News gathered 2024-04-10
(date: 2024-04-10 08:53:33)
Physical modelling of unreinforced masonry walls using a sand-based 3D printer
date: 2024-04-15, from: ETH Zurich, recently added
Del Giudice, Lorenzo; Katsamakas, Antonios; Liu, Bowen; Sarhosis, Vasilis; Vassiliou, Michalis F.
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11850/661336
Classic rock icons announce rescheduled farewell tour dates
date: 2024-04-10, from: San Jose Mercury News
Get tickets to see the Aerosmith Peace Out Tour at SAP Center in San Jose, Chase Center in San Francisco, Kia Forum in Inglewood.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/10/classic-rock-icons-announce-rescheduled-farewell-tour-dates/
Ford trims F-150 Lightning price by up to $5,500 in latest effort to boost EV demand
date: 2024-04-10, from: Electrek Feed
After starting 2024 off strong, with EV sales climbing 86% in the first quarter, Ford looks to boost momentum. Ford is trimming prices on the 2024 F-150 Lightning by up to $5,500 as the American automaker looks to fend off incoming competition.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/10/ford-cuts-f-150-lightning-ev-pickup-price-5500/
Tesla’s Supercharging Network Set To Rake In Piles Of Cash
date: 2024-04-10, from: Inside EVs News
Plus, a court voted to uphold the EPA’s approval of California’s EV rules, and 87% of Tesla owners say they’ll buy another Tesla.
https://insideevs.com/news/715644/tesla-supercharger-network-revenue/
TSMC sees semiconductor bounce as Q1 revenues rise 16.5%
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Early figures post a $18.44B haul for industry bellwether
Semiconductor giant TSMC looks to have rebounded from last year’s doldrums with revenue up 16.5 percent for the first quarter of this year, compared with the same period in 2023.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/tsmc_sees_semiconductor_bounce_with/
April 9, 2024
date: 2024-04-10, from: Heather Cox Richardson blog
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/april-9-2024-827
Evicted — electric tractor company Solectrac hasn’t made rent in months
date: 2024-04-10, from: Electrek Feed
Ideanomics-backed electric farm tractor builders Solectrac offered farmers quiet, clean, and reliable operation with mountains of torque – but the latest news out of California is all bad as the company faces eviction and its dealers abandon the brand.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/10/evicted-electric-tractor-company-solectrac-hasnt-made-rent-in-months/
Elon Musk is rumored to go to India, sparking speculation of Tesla factory announcement
date: 2024-04-10, from: Electrek Feed
Elon Musk is rumored to be going to India this month, which is sparking speculation of an announcement about building a Tesla factory in the country.
Long Live the B’s
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: One Foot Tsunami
https://onefoottsunami.com/2024/04/10/long-live-the-bs/
Colorado reporter’s expulsion from Republican gathering causes uproar
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
DENVER, COLORADO — Politicians and news outlets in Colorado expressed anger over the expulsion from a Republican gathering this past weekend of an experienced politics reporter who was told that the state party chairman “believes current reporting to be very unfair.”
Journalists and prominent politicians, including the former chair of the Colorado Republican Party, came to the defense of Colorado Sun reporter Sandra Fish and against current state Republican Chairman Dave Williams, who said he had “no apologies” for ejecting Fish.
The controversy follows the contours of attacks on the press nationally, partly brought on by former President Donald Trump with the popularization of the term “fake news.” The ejection also appears to have influenced an endorsement Monday in the Republican primary race.
The state Republican Party announced on the social media platform X that it was endorsing U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert over one of her primary opponent, Deborah Flora, in the state’s 4th Congressional District race, partly because “Deb Flora lied about participating in the CD4 Assembly process, & now she’s boot licking fake journalists who only help Democrats.”
The post was a direct reply to Flora’s post on X defending Fish, in which Flora said the expulsion was “wrong and a violation of the First Amendment.”
The chair, who introduces himself on the party’s website as “Dave ‘Let’s Go Brandon’ Williams,” is seeking the nomination to run for the 5th District seat held by Republican U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, who is retiring from Congress.
In a text, Williams said he had no apologies for kicking Fish out of the assembly in Pueblo on Saturday and accused her of being a “fake journalist” and The Colorado Sun of being biased. When asked by text for examples, Williams did not respond. The Colorado Sun is an independent, nonprofit and nonpartisan news outlet that covers Colorado.
“I invite anyone to share any example of The Colorado Sun or Sandra Fish being unfair or inaccurate. So far I have heard nothing,” said Larry Ryckman, editor of the news outlet. “The Founding Fathers weren’t any big fans of newspapers back in the day. But they understood that a healthy democracy demands free, unfettered press.”
The assembly, held about two hours south of Denver, was partly to select representatives to the Republican National Committee and to work on a party platform for the election.
“There are 900,000 Republicans in the state of Colorado and a lot of unaffiliated voters who are interested in what happens at this assembly. And how they find out is via reporters like me being there to cover it,” Fish told The Associated Press by phone Monday.
“I am, as one person on Twitter noted, a little old lady and I’ve been in this business for a long time, and I just don’t think it’s right to eject a reporter from a meeting like this,” said Fish, who has covered politics since 1982.
Fish said she heard rumors prior to the event that she’d be barred from attending, and she asked event organizer, Eric Grossman, who texted her Thursday that he’d get back to her.
“Thanks. I’ve been covering these assemblies for at least seven cycles and have never had issues before,” Fish texted back. Ryckman attempted to reach Williams on Thursday night to discuss but said Williams never responded.
Before dawn on Saturday, Grossman texted Fish saying she wouldn’t be included on the press list and that “the state chairman believes current reporting to be very unfair.”
“I went anyway because, come on, this should be an open event,” said Fish, who was checked in and given press credentials that she wore around her neck along with a Colorado Sun nametag.
About an hour later, security asked her to leave. Fish showed her press credentials, then Grossman arrived and soon a sheriff’s deputy was called. Fish left with the deputy.
“We make no apologies for kicking out a fake journalist, who actually snuck into our event,” Williams said in a text. “Her publication is just an extension of the Democrat Party’s PR efforts, and the only backlash we see is from the fake news media, radical Democrats, and establishment RINOs who hate our conservative base.”
Grossman, in a text, said Fish’s actions were “a selfish political stunt.”
Republican state Senator Barbara Kirkmeyer defended the reporter, writing in a post on X: “Sandra Fish is a fair; honest and respected reporter, as a Republican I’m embarrassed by the GOP chair.”
Former Colorado Republican Party chair Kristi Burton Brown also chimed in on X, describing Fish as “hard-hitting but fair. … This is a dangerous take by the current (Colorado GOP). … Transparency is necessary for our nation.”
Among other stories, Fish has reported on how the Colorado Republican Party under Williams’ leadership paid for mailers that subtly attacked one of Williams’ primary opponents, and that fundraising slowed under his chairmanship.
Trump ex-deputy Weisselberg sentenced to five months for perjury
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
New York — Former Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg was sentenced on Wednesday to five months in jail after pleading guilty last month to perjury charges for lying to investigators and a judge about Donald Trump’s finances.
Judge Laurie Peterson handed down the sentence at a hearing in Manhattan criminal court. The sentence was in line with the punishment the judge said she would impose at Weisselberg’s March 4 plea hearing.
Court officers led Weisselberg out of the courtroom in handcuffs following a brief hearing.
The sentence marks the second stint behind bars for the former U.S. president’s longtime loyal deputy.
Weisselberg, 76, spent around three months in New York’s Rikers Island jail in 2023 after pleading guilty to participating in a 15-year tax fraud scheme at the Trump Organization.
The perjury charges stem from Weisselberg’s testimony at a civil fraud case New York state Attorney General Letitia James brought against Trump, Weisselberg and other executives at Trump’s family real estate company for manipulating property values to dupe lenders and insurers.
Weisselberg testified at the trial on Oct. 10 that he was not involved in an incorrect valuation of Trump’s Manhattan townhouse. Trump’s 2015 and 2016 financial statements valued the unit at $327 million based on its stated size of more than 30,000 square feet, nearly three times the actual size.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office, which brought the charges against Weisselberg, said the former CFO’s emails showed he was in fact paying close attention to the apartment.
Weisselberg also admitted to lying about his role in Trump’s financial statements during two earlier depositions with James’ office. James’ investigation culminated in a $454 million penalty imposed on Trump for fraudulently valuing properties. Trump is appealing the order by Justice Arthur Engoron.
Engoron also ordered Weisselberg to pay $1.1 million including interest.
Weisselberg worked for the former president’s family for half a century. His written plea agreement did not indicate if he would be cooperating with Bragg’s office.
Trump is set to go on trial starting on Monday on criminal charges of covering up $130,000 in hush money his former lawyer Michael Cohen paid porn star Stormy Daniels for her silence before the 2016 election about a sexual encounter she says she had with Trump in 2006.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records and denies any such encounter with Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford.
The case, also brought by Bragg, is poised to be the first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president. Trump also faces three other indictments, which stem from his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss and his handling of sensitive government documents. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Microsoft may want to add a dedicated Windows 11 button for ads and promos
date: 2024-04-10, from: OS News
The company is seemingly contemplating on whether to add a new “Recommended” button on the Taskbar. Interestingly, it is unfinished at the moment, or perhaps Microsoft is just not sure if it should proceed with this button at all. ↫ Sayan Sen at Neowin The beatings will continue until morale improves.
Hailo’s latest AI chip shows up integrated NPUs and sips power like fine wine
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
All your PC needs for 40 TOPS is an M.2 slot
Today, users who want to interface with AI usually do so through a cloud-based service like ChatGPT or Microsoft Copilot, rather than locally.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/hailo_10h_ai_chip/
“Why does part of the Windows 98 Setup program look older than the rest?”
date: 2024-04-10, from: OS News
Well, this is something I never knew. Over on the retrocomputing section of StackExchange, someone asked why the second phase of the Windows 98 installation looked decidedly different from the third phase, even though they’re both graphical phases (the first phase is textual). The answer turns out to be both surprising, and entirely predictable. The first phase is a DOS program called DOSSETUP.BIN, which is the infamous blue part of the installation. The second part, however, is what we’re interested in here, and if the first phase is DOS, and the third phase is Windows 98 itself… What do you think the second phase is running? Yeah, exactly. Basically, because it is running under Windows 3.1 at that point. The second uses this minimal Windows 3.1 to run a Windows 3 program, W98SETUP.BIN (specified as the “shell” in SYSTEM.INI). This starts by copying more files to support all the information-gathering during setup, and various other niceties including the 3D look shown in your screenshot (the contents of the PRECOPY CABs); it ends by copying most of Windows 98, setting the system up so that it will boot Windows 98 from the target drive, and rebooting. ↫ Stephen Kitt So, in order to install Windows 98, you first run DOS, followed by Windows 3.1, ending in Windows 98. I have no idea why this is so funny to me, especially since it fits entirely within expectations of how Microsoft does things.
Someone Paid $262,500 For This Tesla Cybertruck At Auction
date: 2024-04-10, from: Inside EVs News
Granted, it was a tri-motor Foundation Series model, but that’s still more than double the sticker price.
https://insideevs.com/news/715550/tesla-cybertruck-cyberbeast-auction-double-sticker-price/
COVID-19’s class of 2024 spent their first year of college online; eleven seniors said they took it in stride
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Occidental News (Occidental College Student Newspaper)
Occidental’s class of 2024 may be graduating together in May, but just over four years ago, they were dispersed around the world individually, celebrating what seemed to be a one to two-week extension of spring break. Kyle Ahn (senior), from Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, remembered his high school sent the fateful email March 12, 2020 […]
The post COVID-19’s class of 2024 spent their first year of college online; eleven seniors said they took it in stride appeared first on The Occidental.
La Reconquista (the regaining)
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Occidental News (Occidental College Student Newspaper)
Everything changes, yet, everything stays the same. It’s that the final days of the world are also the first of the new life. That’s how everything is, different, but the same; the beach and the sea; the sun and the moon; my face and yours. But it’s not that the night and the day are […]
The post La Reconquista (the regaining) appeared first on The Occidental.
https://theoccidentalnews.com/media/2024/04/10/la-reconquista-the-regaining/2912324
Inherited style: family heirlooms as fashion
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Occidental News (Occidental College Student Newspaper)
In a world full of fast fashion, family heirlooms inspire one to look beyond the next season and to the next century, redefining what “trendy” looks like. Occidental College students discuss what their family heirlooms mean to them, including how the items are a source of connection and memory. Leila Anzalone Leila Anzalone (senior) has […]
The post Inherited style: family heirlooms as fashion appeared first on The Occidental.
https://theoccidentalnews.com/culture/2024/04/10/inherited-style-family-heirlooms-as-fashion/2912372
Outside Occidental: Gamble House showcases Craftsman-style architecture, preserves the artistic identity of Southern California
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Occidental News (Occidental College Student Newspaper)
In March of 1908, ground was broken at 4 Westmoreland Place, Pasadena, CA, to begin construction on a house for the Gamble family, of the cleaning goods company Procter & Gamble. Two years later, the house was completed, and it still stands in the same location today. Its façade is wide and layered. Plants and […]
The post Outside Occidental: Gamble House showcases Craftsman-style architecture, preserves the artistic identity of Southern California appeared first on The Occidental.
Lessons Learned: College may not have been the ‘best four years’ of my life, but it forged me into a warrior
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Occidental News (Occidental College Student Newspaper)
They say college is supposed to be the best four years of your life. As a 17-year-old who was having a hard time in high school because of severe mental health issues, I felt hope. Four years later, I ask myself, who actually believes that? To think this is as good as it gets? College […]
The post Lessons Learned: College may not have been the ‘best four years’ of my life, but it forged me into a warrior appeared first on The Occidental.
In loving memory: Robert Torres
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Occidental News (Occidental College Student Newspaper)
I don’t exactly remember meeting Robert Torres. But during my first summer on campus and my sophomore year — a difficult time — I quickly came to learn that, if I walked into the Tiger Cooler around 4 p.m., there was a man behind the counter who would look at me and ask how I […]
The post In loving memory: Robert Torres appeared first on The Occidental.
https://theoccidentalnews.com/news/2024/04/10/in-loving-memory-robert-torres/2912309
A spectrum of clothing available at Shades of Grey
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Occidental News (Occidental College Student Newspaper)
Opened Feb. 10 on York Boulevard, the glassy outer wall of the Highland Park boutique for fashion label Shades of Grey opens to a selection of ready-to-wear pants, shirts, sweaters and jackets. According to brand creator Micah Cohen, he has been interested in clothes since at least the age of 5 but decided to enter […]
The post A spectrum of clothing available at Shades of Grey appeared first on The Occidental.
Changeist: changing the hearts and minds of youth
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Occidental News (Occidental College Student Newspaper)
Growing up in San Jose, Changeist CEO Mario Fedelin said that the impacts of drugs and violence were prevalent in his early life. A nomination from his brother’s English teacher landed Fedelin at a sleep-away camp in Santa Cruz that introduced him to camp counselor John, who Fedelin said he connected with. Later in his […]
The post Changeist: changing the hearts and minds of youth appeared first on The Occidental.
ROSE, college responds to FAQ on student union drive
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Occidental News (Occidental College Student Newspaper)
In advance of an impending election for the Rising Occidental Student Employees (ROSE) to form a union at the college, The Occidental asked questions to a ROSE representative, Noah Weitzner (junior), and the college administration via the director of communications Rachel Warecki regarding the next steps of forming the union. According to the Information for […]
The post ROSE, college responds to FAQ on student union drive appeared first on The Occidental.
Sophomore Cecilia Grané wins ASOC presidential election after eventful race
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Occidental News (Occidental College Student Newspaper)
Ballots closed April 6 for this year’s Associated Students of Occidental College (ASOC) elections. According to elections chair Sarah Titcombe (junior), the student body voted for candidates in a variety of positions for the 2024–2025 school year. ASOC announced Monday, April 8 that Cecilia Grané (sophomore) won the presidential race with 209 votes. ASOC, Occidental’s […]
The post Sophomore Cecilia Grané wins ASOC presidential election after eventful race appeared first on The Occidental.
That’s Definitely One Way to Transport a New Motorcycle Tire
date: 2024-04-10, from: Ride Apart, Electric Motorcycle News
Gives new meaning to a “spare tire.”
https://www.rideapart.com/news/715359/motorcyclist-transports-new-tire-around-waist/
Eclipse COMPLAINTS?
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/eclipse-complaints
Stray dog found in Eureka stars in ‘Arthur the King’
date: 2024-04-10, from: San Jose Mercury News
His quick move to the home of a Hollywood trainer was largely due to his resemblance to another canine actor.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/10/stray-dog-found-in-eureka-stars-in-movie-arthur-the-king/
Interest rates are not coming down any time soon
date: 2024-04-10, from: Marketplace Morning Report
That’s the conclusion of many investors this morning, following the release of the consumer price index. Consumer inflation clocked in at 3.5% annually, while central bankers are looking for a figure closer to 2%. We’ll talk through the data. Plus, a European court ruled that two Russian oligarchs were wrongly sanctioned following Russia’a invasion of Ukraine. And the Congressional Budget Office found that immigration means gains for U.S. economy.
Kobo’s first color eReaders are coming April 30th for $150 and up
date: 2024-04-10, from: Liliputing
E Ink has been making paper-like displays for decades, but up until a few years ago most of the company’s screens have been black and white displays that support 16 shades of grey, but no color. That started to change in 2020 when the first eReaders and eNote devices with E Ink Kaleido displays started […]
The post Kobo’s first color eReaders are coming April 30th for $150 and up appeared first on Liliputing.
https://liliputing.com/kobos-first-color-ereaders-are-coming-april-30th-for-150-and-up/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-10, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
The explanation of "podping" fails to mention rssCloud, which predates all of this stuff.
https://podcastguru.io/news/so-wtf-is-podping/
Valley Water drains Vasona Lake for routine maintenance
date: 2024-04-10, from: San Jose Mercury News
Project expected to be finished by April 11.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/10/valley-water-drains-vasona-lake-for-routine-maintenance/
Suspect arrested in Hayward hit-and-run that killed bicyclist
date: 2024-04-10, from: San Jose Mercury News
The collision on Sept. 6, 2023, killed 55-year-old Hayward resident Christopher Pena
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/10/suspect-in-a-fatal-2023-hayward-hit-and-run-arrested/
Nix is a better Docker image builder than Docker’s image builder
date: 2024-04-10, from: Ze Iaso’s blog
https://xeiaso.net/talks/2024/nix-docker-build/
As the Stanford-born Marriage Pact takes off, some students find lasting love
date: 2024-04-10, from: San Jose Mercury News
“The idea is, if you think about everybody who goes to your college, surely there’s someone who is a good backup plan for you.”
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/10/marriage-pact-stanford-questionnaire-matching-students/
The Climate Charts Are Not Okay. “The charts are hilariously underpowered attempts…
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/0044356-the-climate-charts-are-no
BMW just hit a major EV milestone as Q1 electric vehicle sales surge, outpacing rivals
date: 2024-04-10, from: Electrek Feed
BMW just hit a milestone after reaching the one million EV delivery mark as sales surged in the first quarter of 2024. With EV sales climbing in all major regions, BMW outpaced the competition in Q1.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/10/bmw-hits-major-milestone-q1-ev-sales-outpace-rivals/
Peter Higgs, daddy of the Higgs boson, dies at 94
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
The particle bearing his name lives on
Obituary In a world dominated by instant gratification, Peter Higgs, who died earlier this week, had to wait more than half of his 94-year lifetime to see his theoretical predictions confirmed, thereby changing our understanding of the universe.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/peter_higgs_obituary/
Tesla Cybertruck Teardown Finds A Lot Of Unused Space Inside Battery Pack
date: 2024-04-10, from: Inside EVs News
It appears as if the Cybertruck’s battery pack was designed to fit taller cells, but then Tesla picked shorter cells instead.
https://insideevs.com/news/715634/tesla-cybertruck-battery-pack-half-empty/
@Dave Winer’s Scripting News (date: 2024-04-10, from: Dave Winer’s Scripting News)
For me, using FSD in my Tesla is like riding a roller coaster. I don’t trust the car not to kill me though. I spend most of my working life dealing with bugs in software. It’s very easy for me to imagine what could go wrong. I don’t understand how people can trust a computer with their lives this way. It’s also disconcerting that the car coming at me in the other direction could be computer-driven. And nowadays when I see the other car is a Tesla, esp this month when everyone’s getting a free demo of FSD, it’s somewhat likely the OP is a computer.
http://scripting.com/2024/04/10.html#a135000
San Jose: Excessive force trial for racist text cop on hold pending 9th Circuit appeal
date: 2024-04-10, from: San Jose Mercury News
Ex-SJPD officer Mark McNamara wants an appellate court to grant him qualified immunity, and is also seeking to move a prospective trial out of the Bay Area.
Chorizo and potato empanadas make an easy, enticing spring meal
date: 2024-04-10, from: San Jose Mercury News
Chorizo, Yukon Gold potatoes and chile peppers combine to make these easy, flavorful empanadas.
Maldives 2024
date: 2024-04-10, from: Alex Schroeder’s Blog
Maldives 2024
The biosphere as we know it is ending and I’m spending two weeks in the Maldives with my wife for her 50th birthday. I feel conflicted.
The trip to get here was long. Zurich Doha by plane, Doha Male by plane, Male Kurudu by water-plane, Kurudu Komandoo by speedboat. I felt like sleeping for 20h when we finally got here. And all the anxiety before leaving was terrible, too.
With that, I think we have all out must-see locations before the end. We went to the Great Barrier Reef in 2017, to the Galapagos in 2020 and now to the Maldives.
2024-04-06. The last leg of the journey – our water-plane was delayed because of the bad weather.
Looking out from the porch the ocean is blue, the sky is blue and the reef begins a few meters in.
We go snorkeling every day. Our last two trips showed me that we need an underwater camera. Oh to have videos of Reef Number Nine in Australia or the penguins and sea lions in the Galapagos! I bought a GoPro Hero 10 before we left.
This cowtail stingray (?) we keep seeing is about 2m long and likes to hide in the sand.
There’s sea grass sprouting right now and sea turtles grazing.
Black tipped reef sharks… harmless! At a later point we did see it attack something hidden in the rocks and it was scary to see!
Most corals look dreary! It’s certainly not as colourful and busy as in Australia or the Galapagos. This purple giant is cool, though.
There are still plenty of colourful fish.
Whenever we’re away on a trip, we play games. The most popular tropical island game is Race for the Galaxy.
Yesterday we also played Petition by @klaatu.
2024-04-10. More pictures.
We saw our first hermit crabs in Costa Rica where we spent our honey moon. We love these little ones. Maybe because they’re slow and easily scared and therefore obviously harmless.
The parrot fish have super sharp teeth and gnaw on the corals. And when you’re snorkeling, you can hear them. Kchrrr! Kchhhrrk!
I also love those lone corals harbouring a small school of tiny fearful fish that retreat and hide in the coral as somebody approaches.
When you swim past the nearby reef the bottom drops out and the deep blue begins. I am always afraid some huge fish will show up.
There is a strange tourism industry, here. The islands are either uninhabited, inhabited by locals, or reserved for tourism. Tourists can stay on the “local islands” since 2007. Natives are only allowed to work on the tourist islands.
The capital city is one of the densest urban areas on the planet. Just look at the image of Malé on Wikipedia.
I would lament this urban sprawl, the land reclamation, the garbage problem, the democracy deficit, the dependence on tourism – but I know what my friend Peter would say, pointing and the Factfulness book. Check out these stats from the German Wikipedia page on the Maldives: In 2020, the Maldives had 541000 inhabitants. In 1950, they had about 74000 inhabitants. At the time, a woman had about 7.5 children on average in 1980 but these days they are so much better off that the growth rate has dropped to 1.8% in 2020 and a woman has about 1.8 children on average. Life expectancy rose from 34.5 years in 1950 to 81 for women and 77.8 for men in 2020. An amazing improvement from the point of view of the locals.
From my green perspective, though… let’s not forget the garbage island Thilafushi.
If you’re wondering why I’m basically skimming, reading and finally summarizing Wikipedia articles on my blog, I gues the answer is that this is how I try to deal with it all. To not close my eyes.
https://alexschroeder.ch/view/2024-04-06-maledives
Oakland B’s hustle to get new Raimondi Park stadium ready before first game
date: 2024-04-10, from: San Jose Mercury News
Come the first week of June, Oakland’s newest baseball team hopes to greet fans with a site worthy of their attendance.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/10/oakland-bs-first-game-raimondi-park/
Rust rustles up fix for 10/10 critical command injection bug on Windows
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
BatBadBut hits Erlang, Go, Python, Ruby as well
Programmers are being urged to update their Rust versions after the security experts working on the language addressed a critical vulnerability that could lead to malicious command injections on Windows machines.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/rust_critical_vulnerability_windows/
Inside the ‘Com World War’: Robberies, Brickings, and ‘Drama’
date: 2024-04-10, from: 404 Media Group
A wave of robberies and other violent acts has swept across the nebulous crime culture known as Com. I watched it all unfold in real time.
https://www.404media.co/inside-the-com-world-war-robberies-brickings-and-drama/
Disneyland threatens lifetime ban for disability cheats
date: 2024-04-10, from: San Jose Mercury News
Tales of Disability Access Service abuse and tips for cheating the system are rampant on social media.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/10/disneyland-threatens-lifetime-ban-for-disability-cheats/
Half Of All Tesla EVs Are Made In China
date: 2024-04-10, from: Inside EVs News
The Shanghai factory consistently builds more EVs than the three other sites—California, Texas, and Germany—combined.
https://insideevs.com/news/715427/tesla-ev-production-shanghai-vs-global/
Podcast: The Wild World of Fake AI Influencers
date: 2024-04-10, from: 404 Media Group
We introduce our new 404 Media fellow Jules Roscoe; go long on fake AI Instagram influencers; talk about the couple making porn for the Apple Vision Pro; and the bizarre sight at a particular New York City chicken shop.
https://www.404media.co/404-media-podcast-week-33-ai-instagram-apple-vision-pro/
Kurtenbach: The Warriors are surging towards a best-case scenario
date: 2024-04-10, from: San Jose Mercury News
The Warriors picked the right time to play good basketball.
Biden hosts Kishida in official visit as US-Japan bolsters defense ties
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
Wooden internet kitchen radio powered by Raspberry Pi 4 and a DigiAMP+ HAT
date: 2024-04-10, from: Raspberry Pi News (.com)
Redditor OracleDude33 built this wooden Raspberry Pi 4-powered internet kitchen radio with an impossibly smooth finish.
The post Wooden internet kitchen radio powered by Raspberry Pi 4 and a DigiAMP+ HAT appeared first on Raspberry Pi.
Virtually and actually, LXC 6 and Incus 6 are here – both LTS versions
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
There’s a new version of Canonical’s LXD too, but its community fork seems to be thriving
The community fork of what is now Canonical’s in-house virtualization tool seems to be doing well, with major new releases of Incus, LXC and associated tools.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/lxc_6_and_incus_6/
Biden administration imposes first-ever national drinking water limits on toxic PFAS
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
The EPA is Cracking Down on Forever Chemicals in Drinking Water
date: 2024-04-10, from: Heatmap News
Current conditions: More than 100,000 people have been evacuated in Kazakhstan and Russia due to the worst flooding in decades • The U.K. is expecting a “mini heatwave” • Multiple tornado warnings have been issued in southern Louisiana.
THE TOP FIVE
- EPA will require utilities to remove ‘forever chemicals’ from
drinking water
In an “ extraordinary” move, the Environmental Protection Agency today announced limits on “forever chemicals” in drinking water. The rule means municipal water systems will have to monitor for six types of PFAS chemicals and remove them. “This is historic and monumental,” Emily Donovan, co-founder of advocacy group Clean Cape Fear, told NPR. “I didn’t think [the EPA] would ever do it.”
There are more than 12,000 known PFAS, and they are just about everywhere, including in nearly half the tap water in the U.S. PFAS exposure in humans has been linked to health problems including decreased fertility, developmental delays, metabolic disorders, and increased risk of some cancers. Utilities have five years to comply with the rule, which will cost them about $1.5 billion annually. Some money from the bipartisan infrastructure law will go toward helping states with rolling out the monitoring and filtration systems.
If you are wondering what any of this has to do with climate change, note that “these synthetic organic chemicals are typically fossil fuel derivatives,” Elsie Sunderland, an environmental chemist at Harvard, explained to Vox. “We talk about climate change and chemical exposure as two separate issues, but we should start thinking about them together. As we move away from fossil fuel combustion and towards renewable energy, the industry is going to turn their products into plastics and synthetic chemicals.”
Get Heatmap AM directly in your inbox every morning:
- Climate scientists ‘increasingly concerned’ about rate of warming
Scientists have been digesting yesterday’s report from the European Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), which said that last month was the warmest March ever recorded and that temperatures have been at record highs for 10 months straight. The bleak data has some researchers worried the rate of warming is increasing and that we’re in “uncharted territory.” It’s worth compiling some of their thoughts here:
- “Myself and other climate scientists are asking whether this year is a blip, a phase change, whether the climate system is broken and behaving in a different way to what we expect.” – Samantha Burgess, deputy director of C3S.
- “Things seem to be happening slightly faster [than expected].” –Mark Maslin, professor of earth system science at University College London.
- “One year could possibly, may be an extreme outlier but the data we are witnessing already in 2024 are pretty disturbing. They hint at feedbacks in the climate system that are stronger than the models predict and are making me and many of my colleagues increasingly concerned about the pace and rate of climate breakdown.” –Jonathan Bamber, director of the Bristol Glaciology Centre at the University of Bristol.
- “If the anomaly does not stabilise by August – a reasonable expectation based on previous El Niño events – then the world will be in uncharted territory. It could imply that a warming planet is already fundamentally altering how the climate system operates, much sooner than scientists had anticipated.” –Gavin Schmidt, the director of Nasa’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies.
Not all experts agree the rate of warming has increased. “The world is warming AS FAST as we predicted,” said climate scientist Michael E. Mann, “and that’s bad enough.”
- Fire officials ramp up staffing to take on growing risks
America’s federal wildfire officials are changing how they recruit, hire, and assign firefighting crews in response to growing wildfire threats, according to The Associated Press. The change is “the biggest shift in wildfire management in decades.” It involves creating more leadership teams – the top-level crewmembers who take on the biggest and most complex fires – and recruiting a lot of new wildland firefighters. The Forest Service aims to hire around 11,300 firefighters this year, AP reports. While in the past many firefighting jobs were seasonal, a longer season calls for more permanent positions. Fire season is already underway. More than 2,669 square miles burned in the first three months of 2024, more than half of last year’s total.
- Survey finds Tesla buyers are extremely loyal to the brand
There are more electric vehicles coming onto the American market every year, but Tesla owners can’t be lured away. A recent survey from Bloomberg Intelligence finds 87% of Tesla drivers in the U.S. say they’ll stick with the brand for their next vehicle purchase, the highest retention rate among the brands in the survey. The second-highest was for Lexus at 68%, followed by 54% for Toyota. At the bottom end was Kia at 33%. About 81% of potential Tesla drivers are switching from other EV brands. Overall, the survey found that 42% of respondents were thinking of buying an EV for their next car.
- EPA cracks down on toxic chemical pollution
The Biden administration yesterday issued its final rule limiting dangerous air pollution from chemical plants. The new EPA regulations will require more than 200 plants to reduce emissions of several toxic chemicals, but focus heavily on two in particular that are very likely carcinogenic: ethylene oxide (used as a sterilizer) and chloroprene (used to make rubber). Manufacturers will now have to monitor their operations for emissions of these two substances and stop any leaks they find. They’ll also have to submit quarterly data from their monitoring efforts, which will be made public, The New York Times reported. The rule is expected to reduce ethylene oxide and chloroprene emissions by 80%, and cut more than 6,200 tons of toxic air pollution every year, “dramatically reducing the number of people with elevated cancer risk,” the EPA said.
THE KICKER
Coal power could account for less than 10% of the total U.S. electricity mix in the coming weeks, a record low.
https://heatmap.news/climate/epa-forever-chemicals-drinking-water
How LA’s Streetlights Serve As Beacons To The City’s Past
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The LAist
Los Angeles has the most diversity in street light design of any American city.
https://laist.com/news/how-to-la/los-angeles-street-lights-history-electric-moons
Undocumented Indian migrants chart new path to US via Canada
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
https://www.voanews.com/a/undocumented-indian-migrants-chart-new-path-to-us-via-canada/7564143.html
I mean, it’s one home. What could it cost? A million dollars?
date: 2024-04-10, from: Marketplace Morning Report
The value of a typical home has reached $1 million or more in 550 U.S. cities, according to Zillow. That’s a record high, and those not-so-affordable homes are proliferating well beyond the usual high-cost metro areas like New York, San Francisco and LA. Also on the program: what to expect from today’s consumer price index report and how a cocktail with roots in wartime propaganda manages to stay relevant.
AI boom is boosting demand even for HDDs, raising prices by up to 20% since Q3
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
No computer part, even spinning rust, is safe from the hype cycle
Hard drives are now being sold at elevated prices and the sector is even experiencing shortages thanks to AI-driven demand, which has similarly boosted prices for SSDs and GPUs.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/ai_boom_is_boosting_demand/
In Memoriam: Ross Anderson, 1956-2024
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: Bruce Schneier blog
Last week I posted a short memorial of Ross Anderson. The Communications of the ACM asked me to expand it. Here’s the longer version.
https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2024/04/in-memoriam-ross-anderson-1956-2024.html
Recall: Accessory Side Case May Detach From the 2024 BMW R 1300 GS
date: 2024-04-10, from: Ride Apart, Electric Motorcycle News
The issue is related to 2024 models fitted with dealer accessory side cases.
https://www.rideapart.com/news/714693/bmw-r1300gs-side-case-recall/
SCV Water welcomes federal help with PFAS costs
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Signal
The federal Environmental Protection Agency announced Wednesday a new “legally enforceable” standard for “forever chemicals” that have plagued the Santa Clarita Valley’s water supply for decades. It was not immediately clear how the announcement of a federal standard and $1 billion to support the standard would impact the yearslong effort underway by Santa Clarita Valley […]
The post SCV Water welcomes federal help with PFAS costs appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/scv-water-welcomes-federal-help-with-pfas-costs/
The Inventors Behind America’s Favorite Pastime
date: 2024-04-10, from: National Archives, Pieces of History blog
Today’s post comes from Saba Samy, an intern at the National Archives in Washington, DC. On April 15, 1947, Jack Roosevelt (“Jackie”) Robinson made his debut in Major League Baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers. That year, Robinson also won the Rookie of the Year Award, making his entrance into the major league unforgettable as the … Continue reading The Inventors Behind America’s Favorite Pastime
https://prologue.blogs.archives.gov/2024/04/10/the-inventors-behind-americas-favorite-pastime/
South Korea goes to the polls
date: 2024-04-10, from: Marketplace Morning Report
From the BBC World Service: Rising food prices, strikes and paying for an aging population were familiar themes as South Koreans voted today. Then, Spain has become the latest country to scrap so-called “golden visas,” where foreign nationals are granted residency rights in exchange for investments. And later, we hear about the aviation industry’s race against time to produce enough sustainable aviation fuel to meet the industry’s growing demands.
https://www.marketplace.org/shows/marketplace-morning-report/south-korea-goes-to-the-polls
X fixes URL blunder that could enable convincing social media phishing campaigns
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Poorly implemented rule allowed miscreants to deceive users with trusted URLs
Elon Musk’s X has apparently fixed an embarrassing issue implemented earlier in the week that royally bungled URLs on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/x_fixes_url_blunder/
SAP transformation program a ‘euphemism’ for job cuts, claims European Works Council
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
8,000 roles affected worldwide, but Germany will bear heaviest losses
A SAP transformation program has been slammed by the European Works Council as a mask for making job cuts.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/sap_job_cuts/
Is This a New Era of ‘Climate Capitalism’?
date: 2024-04-10, from: Heatmap News
Can capitalism solve climate change? Wrong question, argues the author and journalist Akshat Rathi: In fact, you can’t solve climate change without capitalism. Look around the world, as Rathi does in his new book Climate Capitalism, and he says you’ll find companies and leaders who are proving that cutting carbon emissions is not just possible, but also profitable.
The venture capitalist Sophie Purdom, the founder of Planeteer Capital, spends her days looking for those profitable climate companies. She says that a newer, smarter generation of climate startups is on the way.
In this week’s episode, recorded earlier this month live at Princeton University, Rob and Jesse host a special in-person conversation with Rathi and Purdom. They talk about the rise of Chinese EVs, what interest rates mean for the energy transition, and the proper role of policy in decarbonizing. Shift Key is hosted by Robinson Meyer, executive editor of Heatmap, and Jesse Jenkins, a Princeton professor of energy systems engineering.
Subscribe to “Shift Key” and find this episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also add the show’s RSS feed to your podcast app to follow us directly.
Here is an excerpt from our conversation:
Robinson Meyer: I guess a question I’d have, maybe, for both of you is, how much of this is a China story? How much of the amount of progress that we’ve been able to do is actually because of Chinese industrial policies — the sheer scale of the Chinese market and the different incentives that exist on the demand side there to bring down the cost of solar, or batteries, or any of these technologies that are now the main engines of decarbonization?
Sophie Purdom: I think so much about the supply side of the market, right? Those solutions and the innovation, which then kind of ideally ports over, if you succeed, into deployment, which has its own set of challenges and concerns and capital levers and policy integrations. I’d argue that the U. S. overall sits further on the supply versus demand side, relative to a global positioning, and that China’s been playing the demand side of the game much better.
Akshat Rathi: The beauty of wanting to do this book was, to me, watching these lessons. So if you look at the solar story: invented in America; really scaled up in Europe, when Germany and Spain were providing a ton of subsidies for solar manufacturers to put rooftop solar in the early 2000s; and then really scaled up in China when they made a ton more capital available and just flooded the market, so to speak.
Take the electric vehicle story, a very different one because the new energy vehicle policy that made China the biggest maker and consumer — and now exporter — of electric cars actually takes inspiration from California’s zero emissions policy. It’s a vehicle mandate, right? So you have this policy that kind of worked in one state, forced the rest of America to think about it, but China just applied it nationwide and ran with it. So you can apply lessons from one country to another and have policies — one of those beautiful things, which, it can translate if you can tweak it to work in that political economy where it needs to operate.
Jesse Jenkins: Let’s talk a little bit more about the particular form of climate capitalism with Chinese characteristics, how this sort of worked out. There’s a couple of case studies in the book of CATL and BYD and how they have come about. One of the things I want to underscore is, we’ve talked about how American-centric we often are. We sort of think, well, we got to drive all of this. But China increasingly is the world’s biggest market for all of these solutions, right? For EVs, for solar PV. They’re also, in many cases, the world’s largest manufacturer. And the scales are just staggering.
Now, I mean, we in the U.S. deployed just shy of 40 gigawatts of solar last year, something like 36 to 38 gigawatts. China deployed 280 gigawatts. More than half of the global market for solar was in China last year. So it’s not … They started off selling to Spain and Germany, but now, their domestic market is enormous. You can tell a very similar story about EVs, where more than half of the market for EVs is in China — increasingly, more than half of the manufacturing, and now, rapidly, exports too. So what is the flavor of the capitalism story there?
Because many of these companies are state-owned enterprises, at least partially, there’s a strong hand of industrial policy guiding where investment occurs and making it cheaper, and giving free land, and all kinds of different things there. But of course, at the end of the day, there is a lot of … it is in many ways capitalism. There’s a lot of financial motivation that has led these companies to scale and grow.
This episode of Shift Key is sponsored by…
KORE Power provides the commercial, industrial, and utility markets with functional solutions that advance the clean energy transition worldwide. KORE Power’s technology and manufacturing capabilities provide direct access to next generation battery cells, energy storage systems that scale to grid+, EV power & infrastructure, and intuitive asset management to unlock energy strategies across a myriad of applications. Explore more at korepower.com.
Watershed’s climate data engine helps companies measure and reduce their emissions, turning the data they already have into an audit-ready carbon footprint backed by the latest climate science. Get the sustainability data you need in weeks, not months. Learn more at watershed.com.
Music for Shift Key is by Adam Kromelow.
https://heatmap.news/podcast/shift-key-episode-11-climate-capitalism
Carbon Removal’s $100 Billion Conundrum
date: 2024-04-10, from: Heatmap News
Money seems to be pouring into the field of carbon removal from every direction. Every other week there’s an announcement about a new project. Multimillion dollar carbon removal procurement deals are on the rise. The Department of Energy is rolling out grants as part of its $3.5 billion “direct air capture” hubs program and also funding research and development. Some carbon removal companies can even start claiming a $130 tax credit for every ton of CO2 they suck up and store underground.
The federal government alone spends just under $1 billion per year on carbon removal research, development, and deployment. According to a new report from the Rhodium Group, however, the U.S. is going to have to spend a lot more — roughly $100 billion per year by 2050 — if carbon dioxide removal, or CDR, is ever going to become a viable climate solution.
“The current level of policy support is nowhere near what’s needed for CDR to play the role that people say it needs to play in solving climate change,” Jonathan Larsen, one of the authors, told me. “We wanted to reset the policy conversation with that in mind.”
Carbon removal is what’s implied by the “net” in net-zero — a way to compensate for whatever polluting activities are going to take longer to replace with clean solutions. It will be impossible to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, either at the national or global level, without removing carbon from the atmosphere. But how much carbon removal will we need, and how do we make sure we’re ready to deploy it?
These questions are, in a sense, unique to the field. When we talk about cutting carbon emissions from buildings or transportation, experts are relatively confident in the set of solutions and the scale of the task — they know how many buildings and cars there are and can make reasonable estimates of growth rates.
But carbon removal is a moving target. We know how much we’re removing today — roughly 5 million metric tons, mostly from nature-based solutions like planting trees. Based on current policies, Rhodium estimates we could scale that up to about 50 million metric tons by 2035. But figuring out how much we need depends entirely on how successful we are at decarbonizing everything else. Even if we know we need to electrify all our cars, for example, no one can say whether that will happen by 2050, or at least not with any meaningful degree of certainty.
The Rhodium Group report attempts to narrow the range of this uncertainty so that policymakers can better attack the problem. The authors looked at a handful of different decarbonization roadmaps for the U.S. and found that the minimum amount of carbon removal needed to compensate for residual emissions in 2050 is 1 gigaton, which is the same as one billion metric tons, or a 20x increase from where current policies will get us. It’s also equal to about 20% of the carbon that the U.S. emitted last year. “There’s a very likely scenario where we need a lot more than that,” said Larsen. “There’s scenarios where we need less. But most of the studies out there say at least a gigaton.”
Even if it’s only a rough estimate, landing on a number is useful, he told me. Rhodium Group spends a lot of time answering questions about, for example, what some new policy means for achieving Biden’s goal of cutting emissions in half by 2030. “I don’t know if we’d get those questions if there wasn’t a 50% target to shoot for,” he said. “So I think this way, people can be like, what does this next wave of policy support for CDR do for getting the U.S. on track for a gigaton?”
The level of investment it will take to get there is also highly uncertain. The authors did a quick back-of-the-envelope calculation to land on $100 billion by 2050: We need to be removing a minimum of one billion tons by then, and the Department of Energy has a goal to bring the cost of carbon removal down to $100 per ton.
The meat of the new report focuses on how to bridge the gap between the roughly $1 billion we spend today and $100 billion, which starts, according to the authors, with treating carbon removal as a public service. It’s not like other climate solutions such as wind turbines or heat pumps, they write, which can rely on private markets to provide predictable demand or to stimulate innovation. “There are very few pathways one can envision where the private sector is going to both scale and deliver those tons,” Larsen told me. Voluntary carbon removal purchases by companies could play a role, he said, but it will not be big enough to get to a gigaton.
Rhodium recommends expanding and extending many of the federal policy programs that already exist — by, for example, providing more R&D funding, doing more government procurement, handing out more loan guarantees, and creating more “hubs” centered on other approaches besides direct air capture, like enhanced weathering or biomass burial. Right now, the tax credit for capturing carbon from the air and burying it underground can only be claimed for 12 years, and projects have to start construction by 2032. The authors call for extending the claim period and moving up the construction start deadline. They also recommend expanding the program to apply to a wider range of carbon removal methods.
A common criticism of government support for carbon removal is that policy makers will over-rely on it. If we aim to do 1 gigaton of carbon removal, does that mean we won’t cut emissions as much as we could have? What happens if, for whatever reason, we can’t achieve the 1 gigaton?
Larsen disagreed with that framing. For one, it’s easy to turn it around: If we don’t scale up the capacity to remove carbon, and we also don’t eliminate emissions by mid-century, we’re not even going to have the option to halt climate change at that point.
But also, decarbonization shouldn’t stop in 2050, he said. If we can achieve that 1 gigaton of annual removal and then keep cutting emissions from remaining sources, we could eventually get to net-negative emissions — even without more CDR. In other words, if we reach a point where we’re removing more than we’re emitting, we could start to reverse global warming, not just stop it.
“I know that’s, like, sci-fi,” he told me. “But that’s ultimately where we as a species have to go and that’s why setting a target here of at least a gigaton, to me, does not take away the need to reduce elsewhere.”
https://heatmap.news/climate/carbon-removal-100-billion-rhodium
Avi Wigderson, Complexity Theory Pioneer, Wins Turing Award
date: 2024-04-10, from: Quanta Magazine
The prolific researcher found deep connections between randomness and computation and spent a career influencing cryptographers, complexity researchers and more.The post Avi Wigderson, Complexity Theory Pioneer, Wins Turing Award first appeared on Quanta Magazine
https://www.quantamagazine.org/avi-wigderson-complexity-theory-pioneer-wins-turing-award-20240410/
The Savvy Senior | Recommended Vaccines for Medicare Recipients
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Signal
Dear Savvy Senior, My husband and I recently turned 65 and would like to find out which vaccines are recommended and covered by Medicare? — New Beneficiaries Dear New, All recommended vaccines for adults, age 65 and older, should be covered by either Medicare Part B or Part D, but there are […]
The post The Savvy Senior | Recommended Vaccines for Medicare Recipients appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/the-savvy-senior-recommended-vaccines-for-medicare-recipients/
Intel CEO suggests AI can help to create a one-person Unicorn
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
And possibly replace entire business units too
Intel Vision In his Intel Vision Keynote on Tuesday CEO Pat Gelsinger outlined a scenario in which AI will eventually automate entire offices – or potentially even whole businesses.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/intel_ceo_ai_automation/
USG announces budget cut plan for 2024-25
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
Nine of the undergraduate programming assemblies will experience budget cuts.
The post USG announces budget cut plan for 2024-25 appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/10/usg-announces-budget-cut-plan-for-2024-25/
Office Hours: Should parents be criminally responsible for a child who kills?
date: 2024-04-10, from: Robert Reich on Substack
Friends, I’m the father of two young men of whom I couldn’t be prouder. But I don’t take the credit. They also had a terrific mother, loving grandparents, great teachers and mentors, and supportive friends. And they were fortunate to grow up with most of the resources they needed.
https://robertreich.substack.com/p/office-hours-what-responsibility
Gary Horton | The Solution to Screen Addiction? Just Do Things
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Signal
Apple has an interesting feature on its cell phones. The operating system tells the phone owner how much “screen time” they’ve used each day and how their screen use time is trending. It even suggests whether your screen time is healthy … Now, this is an interesting 2024 artifact. Imagine: We live in a day […]
The post Gary Horton | The Solution to Screen Addiction? Just Do Things appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/gary-horton-the-solution-to-screen-addiction-just-do-things/
Annette Lucas | Questioning the Wiley Assumption
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Signal
Since the implementation of the One Valley One Vision and the adoption of the Circulation Element in 2011, numerous housing units have been approved in both the city and county in the Santa Clarita Valley. More developments are in the planning process, plus more annexation is a possibility. Considering that the Circulation Element was an […]
The post Annette Lucas | Questioning the Wiley Assumption appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/annette-lucas-questioning-the-wiley-assumption/
Harry Fischer | Remember Their Sacrifice
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Signal
As I read today’s Signal, Saturday, April 6, I see no mention of the heroic act that took the lives of four brave California Highway Patrol officers at a horrible shootout (next to) J’s Coffee Shop at Castaic Junction on April 6, 1970. The incident is known as “The Newhall Incident” and forever changed how […]
The post Harry Fischer | Remember Their Sacrifice appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/harry-fischer-remember-their-sacrifice/
Verified curl
date: 2024-04-10, from: Daniel Stenberg Blog
Don’t trust. Verify. Here follows a brief description on how you can detect if the curl package would ever make an xz. xz (and its library liblzma) was presumably selected as a target because it is an often used component and by extension via systemd it often used by openssh in several Linux distros. libcurl … Continue reading Verified curl
https://daniel.haxx.se/blog/2024/04/10/verified-curl/
Jeff Solomon | We Do Need Good News
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Signal
In response to Ron Perry’s question (letters, April 2) about where John Krasinski is: The answer is counting his money from the lucrative deal he made with CBS Viacom after what one trade publication dubbed “a massive bidding war.” I, too, loved the feel-good nature of “Some Good News” during the pandemic when we needed […]
The post Jeff Solomon | We Do Need Good News appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/jeff-solomon-we-do-need-good-news/
Classifieds – April 10, 2024
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
The Daily Trojan features Classified advertising in each day’s edition. Here you can read, search, and even print out each day’s edition of the Classifieds.
The post Classifieds – April 10, 2024 appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/10/classifieds-april-10-2024/
US-EAST-1 region is not the cloudy crock it’s made out to be, claims AWS EC2 boss
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
It’s the region where stuff gets stressed at scale first, says Dave Brown, as he plots variants of Amazon’s Outposts
Amazon Web Services’ US-EAST-1 region is not a problem child – it’s the region where the cloudy colossus often runs things at bigger scale than elsewhere and therefore stresses services the most, according to Dave Brown, global veep for compute and networking.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/aws_dave_brown_ec2_futures/
Today in SCV History (April 10)
date: 2024-04-10, from: SCV New (TV Station)
1909 – Oil Pioneer Wallace L. Hardison killed in collision with train. [story
https://scvnews.com/today-in-scv-history-april-10/
San Marcos Boys Volleyball Holds Off Dos Pueblos in Five-Set Thriller
date: 2024-04-10, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
With the victory San Marcos improves to 24-2 overall this season.
The post San Marcos Boys Volleyball Holds Off Dos Pueblos in Five-Set Thriller appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
UConn tops a dramatic men’s March Madness
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
The Huskies wrapped up their second consecutive title in dominant fashion.
The post UConn tops a dramatic men’s March Madness appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/10/breaking-down-a-dramatic-march-madness/
Shadowed fears during presidential elections
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
With election season imminent, so is stress for the undocumented community.
The post Shadowed fears during presidential elections appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/10/shadowed-fears-during-presidential-elections/
Elevator repairs inconvenience Parkside residents
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
Two elevators are currently being modernized to meet all new safety regulations.
The post Elevator repairs inconvenience Parkside residents appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/10/elevator-repairs-inconvenience-parkside-residents/
Indie film returns with Los Angeles Festival of Movies
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
The festival takes a personal, multimedia approach to new independent cinema.
The post Indie film returns with Los Angeles Festival of Movies appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/10/indie-film-returns-with-los-angeles-festival-of-movies/
All in a summer’s bloom
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
In the world of music, how do the outfits of performers and fans translate into the development of personal style?
The post All in a summer’s bloom appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/10/all-in-a-summers-bloom/
SDA hath taken upon itself ‘Richard III’
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
Students showcased their craft in Second Stage’s take on Shakespeare’s classic.
The post SDA hath taken upon itself ‘Richard III’ appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/10/sda-hath-taken-upon-itself-richard-iii/
The California Ice Cowboy
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
Chase De Leo’s unique hockey journey endears him to fellow Southern Californians.
The post The California Ice Cowboy appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/10/the-california-ice-cowboy/
To tip or not to tip, that is the question
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
Tipping culture is toxic and it controls us, but we can learn to tip purposefully.
The post To tip or not to tip, that is the question appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/10/to-tip-or-not-to-tip-that-is-the-question/
On video podcasts
date: 2024-04-10, from: Manu - I write blog
<p><a href="https://robhope.com/">Rob</a> has a <a href="https://yo.fm/">podcast</a>. It started way back in 2019—damn time flies—and season 3 just started. If you’re into tech/design give it a listen. But Rob’s podcast is just the excuse I needed to complain about something I find quite annoying: video podcasts.</p>Season 3 of Yo! is “video first”. Podcasts switching to video to be on YouTube ranks quite high on the list of things that I find annoying. I get why they’re doing it. I’m not an idiot. Yet I still find it annoying. Especially because podcasts that were audio-only would start referencing and talking about things that are “on the screen right now” and now I’m missing out on parts of the conversation because I’m listening to a podcast while I’m driving.
Video podcasts are the worst of both worlds. They’re not as good as actual video content designed to be consumed exclusively as video and they’re inferior to audio-only podcasts. And if you disagree let me know why.
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https://manuelmoreale.com/@/page/L1Bow5RZitODaVOx
Chrome Enterprise Premium promises extra security – for a fee
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Paying for browsers is no longer a memory from the 1990s
Cloud Next Hoping to upsell freeloading corporate users of its Chrome browser, Google has announced Chrome Enterprise Premium – which comes with a dash of AI security sauce for just $6 per user per month.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/chrome_enterprise_premium_security/
‘Santa Barbara News-Press’ Website Goes to ‘Local Kids’
date: 2024-04-10, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Group fronted by Ben Romo makes winning auction bid of $285,000.
The post ‘Santa Barbara News-Press’ Website Goes to ‘Local Kids’ appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/04/09/santa-barbara-news-press-website-goes-to-local-kids/
Santa Barbara City Council Supports Cap of 20 Cruise Ships a Year
date: 2024-04-10, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Council moves forward with recommendations to scale back the city’s cruise ship program.
The post Santa Barbara City Council Supports Cap of 20 Cruise Ships a Year appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
‘Do Something,’ Santa Barbara Sheriff Challenges Board of Supervisors
date: 2024-04-10, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
“We already have,” board replies during heated budget workshop.
The post ‘Do Something,’ Santa Barbara Sheriff Challenges Board of Supervisors appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
April 9, 2024
date: 2024-04-10, from: Heather Cox Richardson blog
Yesterday, former president Trump released a video celebrating state control over abortion; today, a judicial decision in Arizona illuminated just what such state control means. With the federal recognition of the constitutional right to abortion gone since the Supreme Court overturned
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/april-9-2024
Microsoft brings World of Warcraft and other Blizzard titles back to China
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Battle with NetEase ends, peace deal will see games cross the Great Firewall - in both directions
Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard has produced an unexpected dividend: the developer’s signature games will once again be playable in China.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/microsoft_brings_wow_to_china/
Was that a big wildfire?
date: 2024-04-10, from: Hannah Richie at Substack
Tracking global data on the scale of wildfires across the world.
https://www.sustainabilitybynumbers.com/p/wildfire-data
US, Israel ‘ready’ for cease-fire but say Hamas must free hostages
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
The White House blames militant group Hamas for the failure to reach a cease-fire with Israel before the end of Ramadan, as Washington prepares for a high-level meeting on Israel’s plans to invade Rafah and faces lingering questions over the killing of aid workers by Israeli forces. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from Washington.
City takes action in Canyon Country neighborhood
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Signal
A pair of homes on a Canyon Country cul-de-sac on a hillside have drawn the ire of the city’s code enforcement, city officials confirmed Tuesday. In closed session Tuesday, the Santa Clarita City Council unanimously approved a nuisance abatement proceeding against the owner of the property at 27952 Oakgale Ave. in Canyon Country. City attorney […]
The post City takes action in Canyon Country neighborhood appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/city-takes-action-in-canyon-country-neighborhood/
Generals: Proposal to move guardsmen into Space Force would ‘jeopardize’ national security
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-10, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
This is what it feels like to let Tesla FSD do the driving for you.
https://www.facebook.com/reel/1104268214267434
Parents of teenage school shooter sentenced
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
https://www.voanews.com/a/parents-of-teenage-school-shooter-sentenced/7563937.html
Gritty monochrome photograph
date: 2024-04-10, from: Dave Winer’s Scripting News
Via ChatGPT, and a prompt written by Brad Pettit: “Gritty monochrome photograph, midwestern family, juxtapose common legal vices.”
http://scripting.com/2024/04/09/030033.html?title=grittyMonochromePhotograph
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-10, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
This is a post on my test Ghost site.
https://daves-test-ghost-site.ghost.io/i-am-writing-a-post-now/
Blinken, Cameron implore Republican lawmakers to unblock aid to Ukraine
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington to help push for a new aid package for Ukraine. He also met with former President Donald Trump in Florida, as VOA’s Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports from the State Department.
TSMC Will Build Third Arizona Fab After Winning $6.6B in CHIPS Funding
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: Daring Fireball
From the Annals of Underpromising and Overdelivering: Apple’s Timing for the Mac’s Transition to Apple Silicon
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: Daring Fireball
https://daringfireball.net/2015/11/the_ipad_pro
Huawei Cloud reveals the dynamic traffic allocation system it uses to cut bandwidth bills
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Created during COVID to handle video boom and sliced bandwidth costs by 30 percent
Huawei has released details of how it manages its own cloud with a dynamic traffic allocation system optimized by machine learning and developed in response to surging demand for its services during the COVID-19 pandemic.…
Local tennis camp brings the game to all
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Signal
Tennis can be a difficult sport to start up with coaches, gear and courts being not easily accessible or affordable for everyone. That thought, and a passion for the sport, brought the idea of “Love All” to Golden Valley junior Andrew Yoon. “I started playing tennis when I was really young and, over time, I […]
The post <strong>Local tennis camp brings the game to all</strong> appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/local-tennis-camp-brings-the-game-to-all/
House to delay sending Mayorkas impeachment articles to Senate
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
WASHINGTON — Speaker Mike Johnson will delay sending the House’s articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the Senate this week as planned after Republican senators requested more time Tuesday to build support for holding a full trial.
The sudden change of plans cast fresh doubts on the proceedings, the historic first impeachment of a Cabinet secretary in roughly 150 years. Seeking to rebuke the Biden administration’s handling of the southern border, House Republicans impeached Mayorkas in February but delayed sending the articles while they finished work on government funding legislation.
Johnson had planned to send the impeachment charges to the Senate on Wednesday evening. But as it became clear that Democrats, who hold the majority of the chamber, had the votes to quickly dismiss them, Senate Republicans requested that Johnson delay until next week. They hoped the tactic would prolong the process.
While Republicans argued Tuesday that forgoing a full Senate trial would break precedent, most Senate Republicans voted to do just that when Donald Trump, the former president, was impeached a second time on charges he incited an insurrection in the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Their effort to halt the proceedings failed. Trump was ultimately acquitted in the Senate trial.
“Our members want to have an opportunity not only to debate but also to have some votes on issues they want to raise,” said South Dakota Sen. John Thune, the second-ranking Republican Senate leader. Under procedural rules, senators are required to convene as jurors the day after the articles of impeachment are transmitted for a trial.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. D-N.Y., who has decried the impeachment push as a sham, suggested Democrats still plan to deal with the charges quickly.
“We’re ready to go whenever they are. We are sticking with our plan. We’re going to move this as expeditiously as possible,” Schumer said.
“Impeachment should never be used to settle policy disagreements,” he told reporters earlier Tuesday.
House Republicans charged in two articles of impeachment that Mayorkas has not only refused to enforce existing law but also breached the public trust by lying to Congress and saying the border was secure.
Democrats — and a few Republicans — say the charges amount to a policy dispute, not the Constitution’s bar of high crimes and misdemeanors.
“Ultimately, I think it’s virtually certain that there will not be the conviction of someone when the constitutional test has not been met,” said Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah.
Still, with elections approaching, Republicans want to force Congress to grapple with the Biden administration’s handling of the southern border as long as possible.
“I think there are a lot of Democrats who really want to avoid the vote. I don’t blame them. I mean, this is the number one issue on the minds of Americans,” Thune said.
Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat who is facing a tough reelection bid in Ohio, pointed to Republican senators rejecting a bipartisan deal aimed at tamping down the number of illegal border crossings from Mexico.
“Instead of doing this impeachment — the first one in 100 years — why are we not doing a bipartisan border deal?” Brown said.
Before Mayorkas, only one U.S. Cabinet official had ever been impeached. Secretary of War William Belknap in 1876. A House investigation found evidence that he had received kickback payments while administering government contracts.
CHIPS Act hangover sees most US science agency budgets cut for 2024
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
2025 unlikely to see more money flow as Congress turns off the tap
An increase in federal spending for the sciences in the US was short-lived, as the 2024 budget has seen significant cuts for many agencies – and 2025 looks to be on a similar track.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/us_science_funding_falls/
Heart Destruct back with show April 19
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Signal
The Heart Destruct Music Festival is back with a new show for residents of all ages, “Tryx¡ Pt 2,” on April 19 at 20880 Centre Pointe Parkway, right above the Santa Clarita Aquatics Center. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. and music will start at 6 p.m. Student bands that are playing include Minute County, […]
The post Heart Destruct back with show April 19 appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/heart-destruct-back-with-show-april-19/
Man detained on suspicion of carrying concealed weapon
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Signal
Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies detained a man on suspicion of carrying a concealed weapon Sunday night after they responded to a petty theft call at the 26000 block of Carl Boyer Drive, according to Deputy Kabrina Borbon, spokeswoman for the station. According to Borbon, deputies responded to the call at 9:40 p.m. of […]
The post <strong>Man detained on suspicion of carrying concealed weapon</strong> appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/man-detained-on-suspicion-of-carrying-concealed-weapon/
Microsoft Preparing New Push for ARM-Powered Windows Laptops
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: Daring Fireball
Taiwan’s Navy leaders seek cooperation with US at annual exposition
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
washington — Taiwan Navy Commander Admiral Tang Hua said during a trip to Maryland that the self-governing island wants more cooperation with the U.S. and other countries amid military pressure from China.
But as to whether or not he would hold direct talks with U.S. Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Lisa Franchetti, as reported by Reuters, Tang said he would not comment so as to avoid China’s protest causing trouble to the U.S. side.
Speaking to VOA on Monday at this year’s Sea-Air-Space Conference hosted by the Navy League of the U.S. at National Harbor, outside of Washington, Tang said he would meet with navy personnel from the U.S. and other countries.
“I think the People’s Liberation Army’s problem with Taiwan is not just about Taiwan,” he said. “It may be in the East China Sea or the South China Sea. It is a global issue, not an issue specifically targeting Taiwan.”
Taiwan split from China in 1949 after the nationalists lost to the communists and fled to the island, where they established a government that eventually became a democracy.
China claims Taiwan is a breakaway province that must one day reunite with the mainland, by force if necessary.
China also has territorial disputes with Japan in the East China Sea and claims most of the South China Sea as its own, putting it in conflict with Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.
The U.S. supports a “One China” policy that Beijing is the only recognized government of China while maintaining non-diplomatic relations with Taiwan and vowing to defend its right to self-governance.
In response to a Reuters question at a briefing March 29 about the Taiwan Navy chief’s trip to the U.S., Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said China firmly opposes “military collusion between the U.S. and Taiwan.”
He urged the U.S. to “immediately stop official interactions and military contact with Taiwan, and refrain from sending any wrong message to ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces.”
Tang said other countries’ navies at the conference were also looking to partner up.
“Not only are the U.S. military, but also the navies of various countries here. In fact, regarding much of our current cooperation, you just heard them talk about many things, including manpower issues, shipbuilding issues, and demand and cooperation, so I think on these occasions, everyone is seeking opportunities for cooperation and integration,” he said.
Tang, along with Rear Admiral Chung-Hsing Wei, defense attache with the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the U.S., and the visiting Taiwan delegation attended meetings and speeches of naval leaders from the U.S. and other countries.
He also visited the booths of major U.S. military manufacturers at the exhibition, including Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, and inquired about weapons and equipment with companies that have procurement projects with Taiwan.
This included General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, which produced four MQ-9B “SkyGuardian” drones for Taipei.
A senior official from the company also told him that he will join a U.S. Taiwan Business Council delegation to visit Taiwan in early June.
Adrianna Zhang contributed to this report.
Google Expands in-House Chip Efforts for AI Data Centers
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: Daring Fireball
https://www.wsj.com/tech/google-expands-in-house-chip-efforts-in-costly-ai-battle-3121c852
Students protest for University action on Palestine
date: 2024-04-10, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
The die-in, organized by Trojans for Palestine, lasted approximately one hour.
The post Students protest for University action on Palestine appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/students-protest-for-university-action-on-palestine/
US pushes back at Russia’s protest over South Korean sanctions
date: 2024-04-10, from: VOA News USA
WASHINGTON — The United States is welcoming South Korean sanctions imposed on Russian vessels suspected of transporting weapons from North Korea, despite Russian protests.
“We applaud the recent actions taken by the ROK to disrupt and expose arms transfers between the DPRK and Russia – including the sanctions … on two Russian vessels involved in arms transfers to Russia,” a State Department spokesperson said.
“It is important for the international community to send a strong, unified message that the DPRK must halt its irresponsible behavior, abide by its obligations under U.N. Security Council resolutions, and engage in serious and sustained diplomacy,” the spokesperson said Friday via email to the VOA Korean Service.
South Korea on April 2 unilaterally sanctioned two Russian vessels involved in delivering military supplies from North Korea to Russia.
The next day at a press briefing, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova called Seoul’s move “an unfriendly step” that “leads only to escalation of tensions” and “will affect South Korea-Russia relations in a negative way.”
She said Moscow would respond to the sanctions but did not specify how.
On Friday, Russia said it had summoned South Korea’s ambassador.
The South Korean sanctions followed Russia’s veto of a U.N. Security Council resolution calling for the annual extension of the U.N. experts panel that monitors sanctions on North Korea. The panel’s mandate ends at the end of April.
The ties between Pyongyang and Moscow have been growing since a summit in September. Since then, North Korea has been providing munitions that Russia needs to fight its war in Ukraine.
“The ROK government getting involved in applying sanctions, seizures, and other active counterproliferation authorities and capabilities against the North is a huge step forward in joint cooperation to counter, protect and contain the DPRK regime’s weapons exports,” said David Asher, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute.
Asher worked on disrupting North Korea’s illicit financial, trading and weapons of mass destruction networks under the George W. Bush administration.
In an email to VOA on Monday, Asher added, “I fully expect ROK-U.S.-Japan cooperation to expand in counterproliferation, including the identification and targeting of weapons supply networks using intelligence operations, law enforcement, and sanctions.”
A day after announcing the sanctions, Seoul said it had seized a vessel that was suspected of violating U.N. sanctions on North Korea. South Korea said it was investigating the DEYI, a cargo ship that was en route to Russia from North Korea via China, after seizing it in waters off the South Korean port city of Yeosu.
“This reinforces that countries can implement U.N. sanctions, on their own, as they have responsibility to do so,” especially after Russia blocked the U.N. experts panel’s mandate, said Anthony Ruggiero, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Ruggiero has over 19 years working on financial sanctions and proliferation issues, including ones involving North Korea.
There is a broad international and domestic set of legal authorities that countries like South Korea could rely on to go after illicit exports and maritime activities by North Korea, but it is a matter of “whether countries are willing to stop” vessels making illegal actions, Ruggiero said during a telephone interview on Monday.
A U.N. Security Council resolution passed in 2017 authorizes member states to seize, inspect, freeze and impound vessels in their territorial waters found to be conducting illicit activities with Pyongyang and carrying banned goods from North Korea.
A State Department spokesperson told VOA’s Korean Service on Thursday that the U.S. is “coordinating closely with the ROK in its investigation of this ship in connection with U.N. sanctions violations.”
“Despite Russia’s veto of the 1718 Committee Panel of Experts mandate in order to bury reporting on its violation of U.S. Security Council resolutions, U.N. sanctions on the DPRK remain in place, and all U.N. member states are still required to implement them,” the spokesperson said.
Nate Evans, the spokesperson for the U.S. Mission to the U.N., said Monday that U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield will travel to South Korea and Japan next week to discuss ways to monitor international sanctions on North Korea.
South Korea estimated in March that North Korea has shipped about 7,000 containers full of munitions to Russia since last year. The U.S. assessed the same month the number of containers to be 10,000.
Joshua Stanton, an attorney based in Washington who helped draft the Sanctions and Policy Enforcement Act in 2016, told VOA on Monday via email that Seoul could seize ships carrying weapons from North Korea to Russia if certain criteria are met.
Seoul could do so “if South Korea has reasonable cause to believe that the vessel is engaged in sanctions evasion, and if one of the following conditions is also met: the [vessel’s] flag state consents, the vessel is stateless, or the ship enters a South Korean port.”
Intel over the Moon as Lunar Lake’s NPU performance TOPS Meteor Lake
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Pat Gelsinger claims 3x performance in next-gen silicon for AI PCs
Intel Vision Intel claims its forthcoming Lunar Lake CPUs will have over 100 Tera Operations Per Second (TOPS) of AI performance – 45 of them from its neural processing unit (NPU).…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/intel_lunar_lake_npu/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-10, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Matt Mullenweg on Beeper and Texts.
https://ma.tt/2024/04/beeper-texts/
Sherwood has a really interesting & bloggy front page for a news…
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/0044357-sherwood-has-a-really-int
Microsoft squashes SmartScreen security bypass bug exploited in the wild
date: 2024-04-10, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Plus: Adobe, SAP, Fortinet, VMware, Cisco issue pressing updates
Patch Tuesday Microsoft fixed 149 security flaws in its own products this week, and while Redmond acknowledged one of those vulnerabilities is being actively exploited, we’ve been told another hole is under attack, too.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/10/april_patch_tuesday/
Deep Bug
date: 2024-04-10, from: Marginallia log
The project has been haunted by a mysterious bug since sometime February. It relates to the code that constructs the index, particularly the code that merges partial indices. In short the search engine constucts the reverse index through successive merging of smaller indices, which reduces the overall memory requirement. You can conceptualize the revese index itself as two files, one with offset pointers into another file, which has sorted numbers. This code runs after each partition finishes crawling and processing its data, and has a run time of about 4 hours.
https://www.marginalia.nu/log/a_104_dep_bug/
Geely just unveiled the Panda Kart mini EV and it’s sporty cute
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
Geely released images today of the Kart Edition of its Panda Mini EV – and this one is definitely for China’s trendy kids.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/geely-panda-mini-ev-kart/
Why a leading electric bike company just slashed nearly all its prices
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
Ride1Up, a San Diego-based electric bicycle maker known for an increasingly broad range of affordably-priced electric bikes, is trying to make its e-bikes even more accessible. The company just announced that effective immediately, it is cutting prices on nearly its entire lineup.
Dos Pueblos Media and Journalism Students Shine at National Level
date: 2024-04-09, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
DP News named Best Broadcast Show and earns First Place Best in Show in two other categories.
The post Dos Pueblos Media and Journalism Students Shine at National Level appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
Wednesday 10 April, 2024
date: 2024-04-09, from: John Naughton’s online diary
The listening post Dishes in Cambridge’s Lord’s Bridge radio telescope system: listening to the universe. Quote of the Day “He would have been considered a great Emperor, had he never ruled.” Roman historian Tacitus on the Emperor Galba Musical alternative … Continue reading
https://memex.naughtons.org/wednesday-10-april-2024/39342/
Daily EV Recap: Rimac teams up with BMW
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
Listen to a recap of the top stories of the day from Electrek. Quick Charge is now available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn and…
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/daily-ev-recap-rimac-teams-up-with-bmw/
Review | Outstanding in the Fields, with Jazz-Colored Lining
date: 2024-04-09, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
The latest appearance by the Joshua Bell–led Academy of Academy of St Martin in the Fields orchestra featured a world premiere by jazz-inclined composer Vince Mendoza.
The post Review | Outstanding in the Fields, with Jazz-Colored Lining appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/04/09/review-outstanding-in-the-fields-with-jazz-colored-lining/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Kari Lake, Then and Now.
https://politicalwire.com/2024/04/09/kari-lake-then-and-now/
Eriona Grabocka | May 31 City-wide Revival
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
In bustling Santa Clarita, where many residents lead busy lives and often feel divided and disconnected, there is a growing need for spaces that bring people together, fostering community and hope
https://scvnews.com/eriona-grabocka-may-31-city-wide-revival/
iXsystems: focusing on Linux makes more sense than FreeBSD
date: 2024-04-09, from: OS News
A few weeks ago we talked about how iXsystems, the company behind TrueNAS CORE and SCALE, has all but confirmed that its FreeBSD-based CORE product will be put in maintenance mode, while the Linux-based SCALE product will get all the attention and focus from here on out. In an interview with Blocks & Files, the company gave more insight into this choice. “We had a huge chunk of our engineering staff spending time improving FreeBSD as opposed to working on features and functionalities. What’s happened now with the transition to having a Debian basis, the people I used to have 90 percent of their time working on FreeBSD, they’re working on ZFS features now … That’s what I want to see; value add for everybody versus sitting around, implementing something Linux had a years ago. And trying to maintain or backport, or just deal with something that you just didn’t get out of box on FreeBSD.” “It’s not knocking against FreeBSD. We love it. That’s our heritage. That’s our roots, I was on the CORE team elected twice. So believe me, if I felt like I could have stayed on FreeBSD for the next 20 years, I would have absolutely preferred to do that … But at some point, you gotta read the writing on the wall and say, well, all the the vendor supported-innovations are happening on the Linux side these days.” BSD aficionados don’t like this change. Moore said: “Talk is cheap and complaints are free. You know, everyone loves to complain about it. But … if people wanted to push FreeBSD forward for the last 15 years, they would have.” ↫ Chris Mellor at Blocks & Files Above all else, my personal north star is choice, especially in technology, and as such, I want iXsystems to keep focusing on FreeBSD so that not everyone is using Linux for server- and server-like workloads. The fact that TrueNAS was a FreeBSD-based product for this long was amazing, and I would definitely have preferred if it stayed that way for many, many more years to come. However, I don’t think the people of TrueNAS are saying anything wrong or outrageous here. They’ve got employees to feed, and the money is in Linux, not FreeBSD. If they spend more money, time, and resources on getting FreeBSD on par with features Linux has had for ages than on actually developing their own product – TrueNAS – then they’re fighting a losing battle. Honestly, I’m surprised it’s taken them this long to take this controversial step. All we can hope for is that the things they work on, the features they develop, will make it to FreeBSD regardless.
https://www.osnews.com/story/139225/ixsystems-focusing-on-linux-makes-more-sense-than-freebsd/
Review | ‘The Lehman Trilogy’ Brings Artistry and Substance to an American Dream Destroyed
date: 2024-04-09, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
The immigrant family story behind one of capitalism’s biggest crashes takes the spotlight in ETC’s latest work.
The post Review | ‘The Lehman Trilogy’ Brings Artistry and Substance to an American Dream Destroyed appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
Polaris Upgraded the 2025 Rangers to Get You Further Into the Field
date: 2024-04-09, from: Ride Apart, Electric Motorcycle News
Who’s ready to get after it?
https://www.rideapart.com/news/715375/2025-polaris-ranger-side-by-side-utv/
HP 200LX and related palmtops
date: 2024-04-09, from: OS News
The HP 200 LX was a successful palmtop computer introduced in 1994. HP continued to sell it through 1999, an unusually long run for a 1990s computer model. In this blog post, we’ll dig into this largely forgotten form factor and why it became such a quiet success. ↫ Dave Farquhar These devices are incredibly cool, but I disagree that they disappeared, as the blog post states. Just recently I reviewed my main laptop, a very small Chuwi MiniBook (2023) with the N100, and in that article I also listed some other similar options that are still being made and sold today, from companies like GPD and OneNetbook.
https://www.osnews.com/story/139222/hp-200lx-and-related-palmtops/
Deltopia 2024 Sees Larger Crowds in Isla Vista, No Major Incidents
date: 2024-04-09, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
Thousands flocked to the annual street party, with 256 citations and 32 arrests recorded over the weekend.
The post Deltopia 2024 Sees Larger Crowds in Isla Vista, No Major Incidents appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
Now Trump can’t sidestep his key role in banning abortions
date: 2024-04-09, from: Robert Reich on Substack
Friends, Today, Arizona’s highest court, in a 4-to-2 decision, upheld an Arizona law dating from 1864 that bans nearly all abortions. The law, which was on the books long before Arizona achieved statehood, outlaws abortion from the moment of conception,
https://robertreich.substack.com/p/now-trump-cant-sidestep-his-key-role
@Miguel de Icaza Mastondon feed (date: 2024-04-09, from: Miguel de Icaza Mastondon feed)
While my UI for Godot on iPad is making a lot of progress, I have come to realize that getting assets into Godot or loading existing projects is an area I haven’t touched.
The iPad doesn’t make it easy to get files into it.
Just did a walkthrough - it is possible today to import files, but it is cumbersome - and this is not what I want people’s first impression to be.
And getting your project out is also not obvious.
What would people would like to see in terms of getting data in and out?
https://mastodon.social/@Migueldeicaza/112243604382776611
★ From the Department of Spending Tim Cook’s Money: Online Photo Storage Is Surely Expensive to Offer, but Apple Should Offer More
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-10, from: Daring Fireball
Like the stingy U.S. minimum wage — which was last increased, to $7.25/hour, in 2009 — these tiers ought to be adjusted for “inflation” periodically, but aren’t. If Apple really wants iPhone users not to worry about photo storage, they should offer more with iCloud, cost-to-Apple be damned.
Thurmond Supports Civil Rights Office to Battle Bullying in Public Schools
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond joined State Senator Henry Stern, State Senator Susan Rubio, Jewish Public Affairs Committee of California representative Cliff Berg and Anti-Defamation League Central Pacific Deputy Regional Director Teresa Drenick in announcing support for Senate Bill 1421 to establish an Office of Civil Rights within the California Department of Education
https://scvnews.com/thurmond-supports-civil-rights-office-to-battle-bullying-in-public-schools/
Poll: Economy a top issue among US voters
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
U.S. voters say the economy is one of their biggest concerns in this year’s presidential election. VOA correspondent Scott Stearns looks at how candidates Joe Biden and Donald Trump are approaching an economy that the U.S. Labor Department says is adding jobs and lifting wages.
https://www.voanews.com/a/poll-economy-a-top-issue-among-us-voters-/7563415.html
SBART Press Luncheon: Benjamin Caputo and Avery Leck Receive Athlete of the Week Awards
date: 2024-04-09, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
The Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table held its weekly press luncheon on Monday at Harry’s Cafe.
The post SBART Press Luncheon: Benjamin Caputo and Avery Leck Receive Athlete of the Week Awards appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
The Design of Books: An Explainer for Authors, Editors, Agents, and Other…
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/0044354-the-design-of-books-an
Golden Valley High Grizzlies Cafecito Seeks Donations
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
Golden Valley High School has launched the Grizzlies Cafecito, the brainchild of Sarah Caduff, a career transition advisor at Golden Valley, to help special needs students learn employment skills.
https://scvnews.com/golden-valley-high-grizzlies-cafecito-seeks-donations/
New app helps Muslims find halal restaurants
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
Many Muslims follow a set of religious dietary laws, and businesses that serve food allowed under these laws are described as “halal.” For Muslims in Western countries, finding a halal restaurant can be a challenge, but an app is making it much easier. VOA’s Valdya Baraputri reports. Camera: Rendy Wicaksana
https://www.voanews.com/a/new-app-helps-muslims-find-halal-restaurants-/7563418.html
@Dave Winer’s Scripting News (date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s Scripting News)
The last tab on news.scripting.com now contains news from the blogroll on scripting.com. Same feeds, different view.
http://scripting.com/2024/04/09.html#a213549
PC shipments up for first quarter thanks to AI, say analysts
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Vendors rub hands at prospect of higher sales for pricier kit
That AI PC pixie dust doesn’t seem to be working its magic just yet as shipments were up for the first quarter of this year, but only by a few percent. But rising prices mean those who do buy will likely pay more to refresh their kit.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/pc_shipments_canalys_idc/
Lucid Air Deliveries Hit New Record In Q1 2024
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
Lower prices and discounts on inventory cars boosted results.
https://insideevs.com/news/715522/lucid-air-deliveries-production-2024q1/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Poe introduces a price-per-message revenue model for AI bot creators.
NASA’s DC-8 Completes Final Mission, Set to Retire
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
After 37 years of successful airborne science missions, NASA’s DC-8 aircraft completed its final mission and returned to the agency’s Armstrong Flight Research Center Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1. The DC-8 and crew were welcomed back with a celebratory water salute by the U.S Air Force Plant 42 Fire Department after completing […]
https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/nasas-dc-8-completes-final-mission-set-to-retire/
How to vote in the Associated Students and University Student Union elections
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Sundail (CSUN student paper)
Voting season is here, and both the Associated Students and University Student Union have begun holding their elections. The Associated Students has candidates running for president, vice president and AS…
David Lynch: Depression Kills Creativity
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/david-lynch-depression-kills-creativity
Schiavo Co-Authors Bill to Combat Retail Theft
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
In a step toward strengthening the fight against retail theft, California State Assemblywoman Pilar Schiavo, D-Chatsworth, appeared at a press conference on April 9 alongside California Attorney General Rob Bonta, State Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas and a bipartisan coalition of Assemblymembers who introduced a comprehensive legislative package aimed at curtailing the surge in retail crimes.
https://scvnews.com/schiavo-co-authors-legislation-to-combat-retail-theft/
Hyundai Ioniq 5 Robotaxi Passes Simulated Driving Test In Las Vegas
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
This is the first time ever that a driverless car attempted to pass a driver’s license test, and it succeeded.
https://insideevs.com/news/715495/hyundai-robotaxi-passes-driving-test/
Google Cloud chief is really psyched about this AI thing
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
We’re on a highway to ML
Cloud Next Google’s cloud business last quarter achieved an annual run rate of $36 billion, more than five times what it was five years ago, announced Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai at the Google Cloud Next 2024 conference in Las Vegas on Tuesday.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/google_cloud_next_ai/
The Ellis Island Museum Is Revitalizing the Story of American Immigration
date: 2024-04-09, from: Smithsonian Magazine
A $100 million renovation will help preserve the history of the millions of immigrants who passed through the island in the late 19th and early 20th centuries
Unlocking Puyo Puyo Fever for Mac’s English Mode
date: 2024-04-09, from: Tilde.news
EVgo expands Plug & Charge eligibility to over 50 EV models
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
Fast charging network EVgo shared the progress of its Autocharge+ program today, relaying that over 50 Plug & Charge capable EVs are now eligible to utilize the feature. EVgo customers can skip the time required to access an app, credit card, or RFID and can simply plug in and begin their charging session.
One Arrested at City of Goleta DUI Checkpoint
date: 2024-04-09, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
On April 6, 2024, one male was arrested for DUI as a result of a traffic collision at the DUI
The post One Arrested at City of Goleta DUI Checkpoint appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
https://www.independent.com/2024/04/09/one-arrested-at-city-of-goleta-dui-checkpoint/
Rivian is offering a free $5K STEALTH wrap vehicle shield for R1T and R1S orders
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
For those looking to buy a Rivian EV, now may be the time. Throughout April, Rivian is offering a free STEALTH wrap to protect your R1T or R1S on orders. The offer is valued at $5,000.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/rivian-offers-free-5k-stealth-wrap-car-shield-r1t-r1s/
PocketBook InkPad Eo is a 10.3 inch E Ink Color tablet with pen support
date: 2024-04-09, from: Liliputing
The PocketBook InkPad Eo is a 10.3 inch tablet with an Android 11-based operating system and an E Ink Kaleido 3 display with support for up to 4096 colors. Designed for reading and writing, the device has a touchscreen display and a Wacom digitizer with support for pressure sensitive pen input, allowing you to take handwritten […]
The post PocketBook InkPad Eo is a 10.3 inch E Ink Color tablet with pen support appeared first on Liliputing.
https://liliputing.com/pocketbook-inkpad-eo-is-a-10-3-inch-e-ink-color-tablet-with-pen-support/
D-Link issues rip and replace order for besieged NAS drives
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Critical vulns spell bad news for circa 92,000 NAS users
D-Link is telling owners of expired NAS devices to pack them away and replace them with newer kit following the publication of security vulnerabilities that together are now being actively exploited.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/dlink_issues_rip_and_replace/
Notepad++ dev slams Google-clogging notepad.plus ‘parasite’
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Imitator seemingly swiftly sunk from search after plea to users for help
Updated The developer of popular text editor Notepad++ is warning users to beware of a “parasite website” that he says has dubious intentions.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/notepad_google_search_spam/
@Dave Winer’s Scripting News (date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s Scripting News)
Far more important than machine consciousness is: 1. Human consciousness. 2. Species-level consciousness.
http://scripting.com/2024/04/09.html#a202339
US Postal Service seeks to hike stamp prices to 73 cents
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
Washington — The United States Postal Service (USPS) said on Tuesday it wants to raise the price of first-class mail stamps to 73 cents from 68 cents effective July 14.
The proposal, which must be approved by the Postal Regulatory Commission, would raise mailing services product prices by 7.8%.
USPS in November reported a $6.5 billion net loss for the 12 months ending Sept. 30 as first-class mail fell to the lowest volume since 1968. Stamp prices are up 36% over the last four years since early 2019 when they were 50 cents.
USPS has been aggressively hiking stamp prices and is in the middle of a 10-year restructuring plan announced in 2021 that aims to eliminate $160 billion in predicted losses over the next decade and had previously forecast 2023 as a breakeven year.
USPS has been raising stamp prices twice yearly and has said it expects its “new pricing policy to generate $44 billion in additional revenue” by 2031.
A number of lawmakers have raised concerns about USPS planned changes to its processing and delivery network that could impact timely deliveries.
First-class mail volume fell 6.1% in the 12 months ending Sept. 30, 2023, to 46 billion pieces and is down 53% since 2006 – to the lowest volume since 1968 – but revenue increased by $515 million because of higher stamp prices.
https://www.voanews.com/a/us-postal-service-seeks-to-hike-stamp-prices-to-73-cents/7563316.html
Beeper leaves beta, acquired by Automattic
date: 2024-04-09, from: OS News
If you haven’t already heard of Beeper, welcome! Beeper is a universal chat app for Android, iOS and desktop. Our goal is to build the best chat app on earth. Beeper is built on an open source chat protocol called Matrix. Over time, we’ll help people migrate from proprietary, siloed chat networks to an open standard for chat. If you’re interested in learning about this, we’ve written more about our intentions. ↫ Beeper team Beeper is just great. Because I’m European and have ties to two different countries with vastly different chat preferences, as well as a number of friends living all over Europe and the US, I’ve always had to deal with at least four different instant messaging applications. Beeper, and especially the recent completely redesigned Android version, is so good and seamless that I no longer need to use the individual applications at all. It’s not perfect – the new Android version (the iOS version is old and outdated compared to the Android one) still has some issues. If you receive a video and play it, it doesn’t maximise unless you perform a very delicate zoom in pinch. Sometimes, sending video fails. Some emoji replies on some services look huge and pixellated. I’m sure these are all relatively low-hanging fruit types of bugs that’ll get fixes over the coming weeks and months now that the application is out of beta. However, the actual core of the application has been working amazingly well for me. Beeper also has another major announcement. I’m excited to announce that Beeper has been acquired by Automattic. This acquisition marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter as we continue our mission to create the best chat app on earth. ↫ Eric Migicovsky Automattic is the company behind WordPress, Tumblr, Pocket Casts, and a whole load of other products and services. Beeper seems like a good fit, since Automattic recently also acquired Texts.com, another multi-platform messaging client.
https://www.osnews.com/story/139220/beeper-leaves-beta-acquired-by-automattic/
OmniFocus 4.2
date: 2024-04-09, from: Michael Tsai
Ainsley Bourque Olson: For anyone running the Pro edition of OmniFocus, this release also introduces some very exciting new custom perspective rules that support filtering based on dates, repeats, and more: New “Has date in range” rule type enables filtering a perspective by assigned date range. New “Is repeating” rule enables filtering repeating tasks. New […]
https://mjtsai.com/blog/2024/04/09/omnifocus-4-2/
Copyright Takedown Against Hundreds of Wordle Clones
date: 2024-04-09, from: Michael Tsai
Jason Koebler: The New York Times has filed a series of copyright takedown requests against Wordle clones and variations in which it asserts not just ownership over the Wordle name but over the broad concepts and mechanics of the word game, which includes its “5x6 grid” and “green tiles to indicate correct guesses.”The Times filed […]
https://mjtsai.com/blog/2024/04/09/copyright-takedown-against-hundreds-of-wordle-clones/
AirTag Firmware Rollout Date
date: 2024-04-09, from: Michael Tsai
iSoftware Updates (via Sebastiaan de With): Looks like Apple accidentally set the deployment dates for the 2.0.73 AirTag firmware to “m/d/24” instead of “m/d/2024” that has used in previous versions and which the AirTag update system uses as date format.As a result, AirTags think the deployment dates are in the year 24 and they just […]
https://mjtsai.com/blog/2024/04/09/airtag-firmware-rollout-date/
Daylight Saving Time UI Design Test
date: 2024-04-09, from: Michael Tsai
Nikita Prokopov (Hacker News): I have five clocks in my house. All of them I have to change manually twice a year: one hour back in the Autumn and one hour forward in the Spring. Today was one of these days. Each clock presents a unique puzzle. Three out of five have no direct controls […]
https://mjtsai.com/blog/2024/04/09/daylight-saving-time-ui-design-test/
MSI Cubi N ADL now available as a fanless mini PC
date: 2024-04-09, from: Liliputing
The MSI Cubi N ADL is a small desktop computer with support for up to an Intel Processor N200 chip and room inside the case for an M.2 SSD, a 2.5 inch hard drive or SSD, and up to 16GB of RAM. First launched last summer as an actively cooled computer (with a fan inside […]
The post MSI Cubi N ADL now available as a fanless mini PC appeared first on Liliputing.
https://liliputing.com/msi-cubi-n-adl-now-available-as-a-fanless-mini-pc/
Finally: an answer to Aaron’s question about the confusing freezer knob: do…
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/0044355-finally-an-answer-to-aaro
Call for Artists, ‘Exploring Domestic Spaces’ Exhibit
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
The city of Santa Clarita is inviting artists to submit artwork for consideration for our upcoming “Exploring Domestic Spaces” juried exhibition, which will be on view at the Newhall Community Center.
https://scvnews.com/call-for-artists-exploring-domestic-spaces-exhibit/
US defense chief denies genocide committed in Gaza
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
Washington — The Pentagon is not backing off on its support for Israel, despite growing frustration by some U.S. lawmakers that Israel is crossing ethical lines as it goes after Hamas in Gaza.
During a U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Tuesday interrupted multiple times by protesters accusing Israel — and the United States — of having innocent blood on its hands, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin pushed back.
Senator Tom Cotton, a Republican, asked Austin: “Is Israel committing genocide in Gaza?”
Austin replied: “Senator Cotton, we don’t have any evidence of genocide.”
But under repeated questioning, Austin acknowledged Israel’s military can and must do more to differentiate between Hamas militants and civilians.
“There’s no question that there have been far too many civilian casualties in this conflict,” he said.
Austin said he has warned his Israeli counterpart that a failure to allow the delivery of much more humanitarian aid to Gaza “would just create more terrorism.”
As for continued talk by Israel about an operation to root out Hamas in Rafah, the secretary of defense was blunt. “It cannot be what we’ve seen in the past in terms of the type of activities that we’ve seen in Gaza City and in Khan Yunis,” he said.
Not all lawmakers were satisfied with those answers. Some expressed frustration that Washington has been forced to step in.
“There’s no reason the United States should have to build a pier in the eastern Mediterranean. There’s no reason we should have to airdrop supplies,” said Senator Tim Kaine, a Democrat. “The pace of humanitarian aid is insufficient.”
Other lawmakers put blame on Hamas. Austin agreed that the U.S.-designated terror group’s ongoing conduct continues to amount to war crimes.
The hearing was about President Joe Biden’s budget request for the Department of Defense.
https://www.voanews.com/a/us-defense-chief-denies-genocide-committed-in-gaza/7563223.html
Tesla Cybertruck teardown shows battery pack is ‘half empty’ and we are confused
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
A teardown of the Tesla Cybertruck showed that the battery pack is somehow half empty, which the chief engineer confirmed, and we are quite confused about it.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/tesla-cybertruck-teardown-battery-pack-is-half-empty-confused/
Did North Korea Really Test a Hypersonic Missile?
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: RAND blog
North Korea is working toward the deployment of hypersonic missiles that it claims could render South Korean and U.S. missile defenses useless. Still, its claims of a successful test this month appear greatly exaggerated.
https://www.rand.org/pubs/commentary/2024/04/did-north-korea-really-test-a-hypersonic-missile.html
Daily Deals (4-09-2024)
date: 2024-04-09, from: Liliputing
Best Buy is selling the Asus ROG Ally handheld gaming PC with a Ryzen Z1 Extreme processor for $100 off the list price (or more than $200 off if you opt for an open box model). Amazon is selling a mini PC with an Intel N100 chip, 8GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, WiFi 6, […]
The post Daily Deals (4-09-2024) appeared first on Liliputing.
https://liliputing.com/daily-deals-4-09-2024/
Governor, Congress members to meet over support for rebuilding bridge
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
ANNAPOLIS, Maryland — Maryland Governor Wes Moore said he plans to meet with members of Congress this week to discuss support for rebuilding the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge, which has blocked the main shipping channel at Baltimore’s port for nearly two weeks.
“I’m going to be spending part of this week with our delegation going down and meeting with leaders and ranking members in the Congress and letting them know that this issue is not partisan. This is a patriotic responsibility to be able to support one of this country’s great economic engines,” Moore said Monday. “This is an opportunity to support a port that is directly responsible for the hiring of tens of thousands of people.”
As Maryland lawmakers reached the end of their legislative session Monday, a measure authorizing use of the state’s rainy-day fund to help port employees was approved and sent to Moore’s desk. The governor planned to sign the emergency legislation Tuesday, putting it into effect right away.
The bridge collapsed March 26 after being struck by the cargo ship Dali, which lost power shortly after leaving Baltimore, bound for Sri Lanka. The ship issued a mayday alert with just enough time for police to stop traffic, but not enough to save a roadwork crew filling potholes on the bridge.
Authorities believe six workers — immigrants from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador — plunged to their deaths in the Patapsco River. Two others survived. The bodies of three workers have been recovered, but the search for the other victims continues.
Moore said the state remains focused on supporting the families of the six workers.
“We are still very much focused on bringing closure and comfort to these families, and the operations to be able to bring that closure to these families,” Moore said. “It has not stopped. It continues to be a 24/7 operation.”
Temporary, alternate channels have been cleared, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said last week that it expects to open a limited-access channel for barge container ships and some vessels moving cars and farm equipment by the end of April. Officials are aiming to restore normal capacity to Baltimore’s port by the end of May.
Moore was upbeat about progress in reopening channels.
He said that if he had been told the morning of the collapse that there would be two channels open in two weeks, “I would have said that sounds really ambitious, considering what we saw, but that’s where we are.”
The governor also spoke of progress in removing debris, saying crews pulled 318 metric tons (350 tons) of steel from the Patapsco River on Sunday.
More than 50 salvage divers and 12 cranes are on site to help cut sections of the bridge and remove them from the key waterway. Crews began removing containers from the deck over the weekend, and they’re making progress toward removing sections of the bridge that lie across the ship’s bow so it can eventually move, according to the Key Bridge Response Unified Command.
Arizona can enforce an 1864 law criminalizing nearly all abortions, court says
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
phoenix — The Arizona Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the state can enforce its long-dormant law criminalizing all abortions except when a mother’s life is at stake.
The case examined whether the state is still subject to a law that predates Arizona’s statehood. The 1864 law provides no exceptions for rape or incest but allows abortions if a mother’s life is in danger. The state’s high court ruling reviewed a 2022 decision by the state Court of Appeals that said doctors couldn’t be charged for performing the procedure in the first 15 weeks of pregnancy.
An older court decision blocked enforcing the 1864 law shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court issued the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision guaranteeing a constitutional right to an abortion. After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, then state Attorney General Mark Brnovich, a Republican, persuaded a state judge in Tucson to lift the block on enforcing the 1864 law.
Brnovich’s Democratic successor, Attorney General Kris Mayes, had urged the state’s high court to side with the Court of Appeals and hold the 1864 law in abeyance. Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision ending a nationwide right to abortion, most Republican-controlled states have started enforcing new bans or restrictions and most Democrat-dominated ones have sought to protect abortion access.
Currently, 14 states are enforcing bans on abortion at all stages of pregnancy, with limited exceptions. Two states ban the procedure once cardiac activity can be detected, which is about six weeks into pregnancy and often before women realize they’re pregnant.
Nearly every ban has been challenged with a lawsuit. Courts have blocked enforcing some restrictions, including bans throughout pregnancy in Utah and Wyoming.
A proposal pending before the Arizona Legislature that would repeal the 1864 law hasn’t received a committee hearing this year.
“Today’s decision to reimpose a law from a time when Arizona wasn’t a state, the Civil War was raging, and women couldn’t even vote will go down in history as a stain on our state,” Mayes said Tuesday.
The justices said the state can start enforcing the law in 14 days. Former Arizona Governor Doug Ducey, who signed the state’s current law restricting abortion after 15 weeks, posted on X saying Tuesday’s ruling was not the outcome he would have wanted.
“I signed the 15-week law as governor because it is thoughtful policy, and an approach to this very sensitive issue that Arizonans can actually agree on,” he said.
President Joe Biden called the 1864 Arizona law cruel.
“Millions of Arizonans will soon live under an even more extreme and dangerous abortion ban, which fails to protect women even when their health is at risk or in tragic cases of rape or incest,” he said in a statement. “Vice President Harris and I stand with the vast majority of Americans who support a woman’s right to choose. We will continue to fight to protect reproductive rights and call on Congress to pass a law restoring the protections of Roe v. Wade.”
Google details privacy and security features of its new Find My Device network
date: 2024-04-09, from: OS News
Yesterday, I posted an item about the updated Find My Device network Google launched for Android, but I forgot to link to an additional blog post by Google about the various security and privacy precautions they’ve taken. One aspect in particular stands out as something new that Apple’s Find My network doesn’t do (yet): This is a first-of-its-kind safety protection that makes unwanted tracking to a private location, like your home, more difficult. By default, the Find My Device network requires multiple nearby Android devices to detect a tag before reporting its location to the tag’s owner. Our research found that the Find My Device network is most valuable in public settings like cafes and airports, where there are likely many devices nearby. By implementing aggregation before showing a tag’s location to its owner, the network can take advantage of its biggest strength – over a billion Android devices that can participate. This helps tag owners find their lost devices in these busier locations while prioritizing safety from unwanted tracking near private locations. In less busy areas, last known location and Nest finding are reliable ways to locate items. ↫ Dave Kleidermacher In addition, when you’re at home, your devices won’t contribute any information either. There’s a whole bunch of other things in there, too, so head on over if you’re curious.
Hank Green lost his hair during chemotherapy and it grew back curly….
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/0044353-john-green-lost-his-hair
Biden-Kishida summit aims for deeper, more regionally integrated US-Japan security ties
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
White House — President Joe Biden is set to welcome Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to the White House Tuesday evening for an official visit that will mark one of the biggest structural upgrades of the U.S.-Japan security alliance in several decades.
The visit will also usher in Tokyo’s further integration into Washington’s security framework with other allies in the region, a key factor to deter Beijing.
The visit will “highlight the high ambition of our alliance,” said national security adviser Jake Sullivan during a White House briefing Tuesday.
Biden and Kishida will announce measures to enhance “defense and security cooperation to enable greater coordination and integration of our forces and ensure that they’re optimally postured and linked to other like-minded partners,” Sullivan said.
“There will be major deliverables on space as we lead the way on space exploration and returning to the moon,” he added. “There will be announcements of significant research partnerships between our leading institutions on critical and emerging technologies such as AI [artificial intelligence], quantum semiconductors, and clean energy.”
The measures announced will first time will allow the United States and Japan to collaborate more closely on the development and potentially co-production of vital military and defense equipment, said Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell in a recent event hosted by the Center for a New American Security.
It’s a milestone in the U.S. alliance with Japan, what Campbell describes as the “cornerstone of our engagement in the Indo-Pacific.”
The plan is set to declare their intention to modernize a framework that has for decades guided interaction between Japan’s Self-Defense Forces and the approximately 54,000 U.S. troops in Japan.
Tokyo wants the U.S. military to strengthen the functions of its command headquarters in Japan to allow for better coordination. Under the current system, major decisions are coordinated with the U.S. military’s Indo-Pacific Command, located more than 6,000 kilometers (3,728 miles) and five time zones away in Hawaii.
Under its new national security strategy, Japan is establishing a joint operational command for its self-defense force, said Tetsuo Kotani, senior fellow at the Japan Institute of International Affairs.
“In that sense we have done our homework and now it’s time for the United States to upgrade their command-and-control structure in the Indo-Pacific,” he told VOA.
Broader regional frameworks
The leaders agree on the goal of expanding bilateral security ties into broader regional frameworks with other U.S. allies, including the Philippines and Australia.
The pair will be joined later this week by Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in a summit set to bolster trilateral maritime cooperation in the South China Sea. An announcement on some form of trilateral joint naval patrol activity is widely expected.
Sullivan confirmed to VOA the widely expected announcement of trilateral joint naval patrols, a move that is likely to trigger a strong reaction from Beijing.
“We just saw ‘trilateral plus Australia’ new form of quadrilateral joint naval patrols last week, so you can expect to see more of that in the future,” he said.
Beyond bolstering naval defense amid Beijing’s ramped-up aggression in the South China Sea, Tokyo has signaled it wants to link Japan into a broader integrated air and missile defense network with the U.S. and Australia.
“Pushing ahead on cooperation with like-minded countries on security, including defense equipment and technology, will lead to the establishment of a multilayered network, and by expanding that we can improve deterrence,” Kishida said Friday.
Considering the difficulties of integrating such systems, talks will likely begin with establishing greater situational awareness among the three countries for their individual air and missile defenses, said Jeffrey Hornung, the Japan Lead for the RAND National Security Research Division and a senior political scientist at RAND.
“Any cooperation on this front will help dilute Chinese anti-access, area denial efforts by enabling the three countries to pass information on Chinese activities,” he told VOA.
Japan’s AUKUS role
In response to VOA’s question, Sullivan also confirmed the pair will discuss Japan’s potential involvement in AUKUS, a trilateral security partnership formed in 2021 among the U.S., Australia and the United Kingdom.
“We’re prepared to work with additional partners beyond the three of us, where they can bring capabilities,” Sullivan said. “Japan is one of the countries that could very well bring capabilities to that, so we will explore a partnership with Japan under Pillar II of AUKUS as well as other partners.”
In a joint statement published Tuesday by the British government, the group said they are “considering cooperation with Japan on AUKUS Pillar II advanced capability projects,” in recognition of Japan’s strengths and its close bilateral defense partnerships with all three countries.
“Pillar II” of AUKUS is focused on delivering advanced capabilities and sharing technologies across a range of areas including quantum computing, undersea, hypersonic, artificial intelligence and cyber technology. The step takes the group’s effort to push back against China beyond its first pillar – delivery of nuclear-powered attack submarines to Australia, for which there are no known plans to include Japan.
Any multinational defense industrial partnership is an extremely complicated endeavor, said Yuki Tatsumi, director of the Japan Program at the Stimson Center.
Many aspects need to be harmonized, from industrial security standards and export licensing regulations to the arrangement on intellectual property rights, she told VOA. “Making it a reality will take many months of careful consultation among all four countries.”
Nippon Steel
A potential rift remains between Biden and Kishida over the proposed sale of Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel of Japan, a deal that has become embroiled in protectionist campaign rhetoric ahead of the November U.S. presidential election.
Last month Biden announced his opposition to the deal, saying the U.S. needs to “maintain strong American steel companies powered by American steelworkers.” His prospective opponent, former President Donald Trump, has promised to block the $14 billion deal if he is elected again.
The optics of a Japanese firm trying to buy an American manufacturing company during an election year is bad for Biden, Tatsumi said, and the pair will want to avoid airing their differences publicly.
In a Tuesday event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel sought to downplay the impact of Biden’s opposition to the U.S. Steel acquisition to the relationship.
He noted that in February the Biden administration approved a plan that would drive billions of dollars in revenue to a U.S.-based subsidiary of the Japanese company Mitsui for crane production in the United States.
Kishida and Japanese first lady Yuko Kishida will be briefly welcomed at the White House on Tuesday evening ahead of Wednesday’s official visit and formal state dinner, the fifth that Biden will have hosted since taking office in 2021.
VOA’s William Gallo contributed to this report.
Verla Nest: CSUN welcomes its first-ever basic needs location to support students
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Sundail (CSUN student paper)
CSUN is bringing a basic needs and resources center to students starting in the fall 2025 semester. The Verla Nest is the first of its kind in the CSU system….
Acorn Archimedes A3000 Replica PCB
date: 2024-04-09, from: Tilde.news
https://www.tindie.com/products/bobsbits/acorn-archimedes-a3000-replica-pcb/
Arm CEO warns AI’s power appetite could devour 25% of US electricity by 2030
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Robot overlords demand more energy
Arm CEO Rene Haas cautions that if AI continues to get more powerful without boosts in power efficiency, datacenters could consume extreme amounts of electricity.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/ai_datacenters_unsustainable/
Icon’s New Elsinore Monotype Helmet Looks Like It Belongs in Star Wars
date: 2024-04-09, from: Ride Apart, Electric Motorcycle News
No, it’s not made of Beskar.
https://www.rideapart.com/news/715385/icon-elsinore-monotype-helmet-details/
This Artist Used A.I. to Recreate a Velázquez Painting Lost in a Fire 300 Years Ago
date: 2024-04-09, from: Smithsonian Magazine
Fernando Sánchez Castillo employed historical resources and image-generation technologies to reimagine “Expulsion of the Moriscos”
April 26-28: ‘Eleanor’s Story: An American Girl in Hitler’s Germany’
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
“Eleanor’s Story: An American Girl in Hitler’s Germany,” presented by Ingrid Garner will open Friday, April 26 at The MAIN theater in Old Town Newhall. The show will run for four performances.
https://scvnews.com/april-26-28-eleanors-story-an-american-girl-in-hitlers-germany/
$10 million says we won’t see human-superior AGI by the end of 2025
date: 2024-04-09, from: Gary Marcus blog
An open letter to Elon Musk
https://garymarcus.substack.com/p/10-million-says-we-wont-see-human
80 Percent of Global CO2 Emissions Come From Just 57 Companies, Report Shows
date: 2024-04-09, from: Smithsonian Magazine
Many of these companies increased their fossil fuel production after the Paris Agreement was signed in 2016
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
What a total solar eclipse looks like from an airplane.
https://www.threads.net/@civixplorer/post/C5grUOFMklc
H-1B visa fraud alive and well amid efforts to crack down on abuse
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
It’s the gold ticket favored by foreign techies – and IT giants suspected of gaming the system
In depth The US Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) last October proposed new rules to reform the H-1B visa program following its acknowledgement of widespread fraud in April last year.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/h1b_visa_fraud/
Take a Sunset Stroll at Vasquez Rocks
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
Take a Sunset Stroll at Vasquez Rocks Natural Area and Nature Center in Aqua Dulce. Get outdoors and explore the park on beginner friendly early evening 60-minute hikes that highlight the park’s amazing natural and human histories with park staff and volunteers.
https://scvnews.com/take-a-sunset-stroll-at-vasquez-rocks/
WordPress parent company Automattic buys universal chat app Beeper (which is finally out of beta)
date: 2024-04-09, from: Liliputing
Beeper is a “universal” chat application designed to let you communicate not only with other Beeper users, but with folks who are using other chat platforms including SMS, RCS, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Slack, Signal, Telegram, Google Chat, Discord, and IRC, just to name a few. First launched as an invite-only beta in 2021, Beeper has […]
The post WordPress parent company Automattic buys universal chat app Beeper (which is finally out of beta) appeared first on Liliputing.
Amanda, There Is No Audience
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/amanda-there-is-no-audience
Hyundai IONIQ 9 three-row electric SUV preps for debut following US sighting
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
Hyundai’s first three-row electric SUV is approaching its debut after the EV was spotted testing in the US. The Hyundai IONIQ 9 appears even bigger on the streets of California as it flaunts sleek new production lights.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/hyundai-ioniq-9-three-row-ev-set-debut-us-sighting/
A Michigan Hunter Thought He Killed a Large Coyote. It Turned Out to Be an Endangered Gray Wolf
date: 2024-04-09, from: Smithsonian Magazine
Wildlife officials believe the animal was likely the first gray wolf spotted in the southern Lower Peninsula in 100 years
NASA Astronaut Loral O’Hara to Discuss Space Station Mission
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
After spending six-and-a-half-months aboard the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara will participate in a news conference at 10:45 a.m. EDT Monday, April 15, at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. The news conference will air live on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream […]
https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-astronaut-loral-ohara-to-discuss-space-station-mission/
Got an unpatched LG ‘smart’ television? It could be watching you back
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Four fatal flaws allow TV takeover
A handful of bugs in LG smart TVs running WebOS could allow an attacker to bypass authorization and gain root access on the device.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/lg_tv_critical_bugs/
GM’s Ultium EV Tech Might Power NASA’s Next Vehicle On The Moon
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
NASA has chosen three teams to develop a lunar terrain vehicle that will carry astronauts on Earth’s natural satellite.
https://insideevs.com/news/715446/gm-ultium-nasa-lunar-terrain-vehicle/
Apple’s New iPhone Ad: ‘Don’t Let Me Go’
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Daring Fireball
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bks2zGnssMY
Save $250 on Greenworks’ 3000 PSI electric pressure washer, Hover-1 e-motorbike now just $922, and more
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
Clean off winter grime and get your outdoor space ready for spring with a chance to save on this Greenworks 3000 PSI Electric Pressure Washer through the end of the day. It drops to $430 alongside an even deeper discount on the Hover-1 Altai Pro R500 e-bike that’s down to $922. Plus, you’ll find all of the other day’s other best Green Deals below.
Head below for other New Green Deals we’ve found today and, of course, Electrek’s best EV buying and leasing deals. Also, check out the new Electrek Tesla Shop for the best deals on Tesla accessories.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/greenworks-electric-pressure-washer-hover-1-e-motorbike-more/
“Buying a soccer club is probably one of the worst investments you…
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/0044350-buying-a-soccer-club-is
A Massive Crane Helping With the Baltimore Bridge Cleanup Was Built to Recover a Sunken Soviet Submarine
date: 2024-04-09, from: Smithsonian Magazine
The Chesapeake 1000 was used to construct a ship for a top-secret CIA mission in the 1970s
A Water Wrongdoer’s Revenge
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Lever News
A California lawmaker wants to dismantle the Clean Water Act protections that he was fined for violating.
https://www.levernews.com/a-water-wrongdoers-revenge/
The Updated 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E Is Now Available For Online Order
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
The updated Mach-E is quicker, has more range and the lineup is simpler.
https://insideevs.com/news/715506/update-mache-ford-2024-online/
Ex-Microsoft engineer gets seven years after trying to hire hitman for double murder
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Hint: If someone says they’re an assassin on the dark web, they’re probably not
A former Microsoft software engineer has been sentenced to seven years in prison after paying $16,000 in Bitcoin to arrange the murder of the parents of his adopted children.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/microsoft_engineer_fake_hitman/
Mount Etna Puffs ‘Smoke Rings’ Into the Sky
date: 2024-04-09, from: Smithsonian Magazine
The circular wisps are mostly condensed water vapor
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mount-etna-puffs-smoke-rings-into-the-sky-180984120/
April 8, 2024
date: 2024-04-09, from: Heather Cox Richardson blog
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/april-8-2024-739
87% of US Tesla drivers say they’ll buy another Tesla
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
Tesla maintains an 87% brand retention rate, with Lexus (68%) and Toyota (54%) trailing, according to a new Bloomberg Intelligence survey.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/87-percent-us-tesla-drivers-say-theyll-buy-another-tesla/
As food service in US prisons gets outsourced, quantity and quality is…
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/0044349-as-food-service-in-us
Tesla Cybertruck to get a 20% charge speed increase
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
Tesla Cybertruck is soon going to get a 20% increase in its fast-charging speed through an over-the-air software update.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/tesla-cybertruck-charge-speed-increase/
CSUN men’s volleyball falls to top-ranked Long Beach State
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Sundail (CSUN student paper)
In a historic season in which they knocked off the second, third, and fourth-ranked teams in the nation, CSUN men’s volleyball (11-14, 2-6 Big West Conference) was feeling it. Splitting…
https://sundial.csun.edu/180174/sports/csun-mens-volleyball-falls-to-top-ranked-long-beach-state/
Tesla’s Prefabricated Supercharger Units Can Go Online Four Days After Being Delivered
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
The company released a video showcasing how it managed to speed up the deployment of both V3 and V4 Superchargers in the U.S.
https://insideevs.com/news/715408/tesla-prefabricated-superchargers-4-days-online/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Beeper is joining Automattic.
https://blog.beeper.com/2024/04/09/beeper-is-joining-automattic/
Don’t Watch This Bonkers Beach Racing Carnage At The 2024 Enduropale
date: 2024-04-09, from: Ride Apart, Electric Motorcycle News
If you do, you may not be able to stop because it’s absolutely mad.
https://www.rideapart.com/news/715013/beach-racing-2024-enduropale-france/
June 6: SCV Chamber to Host 15th Annual State of the County
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
The Santa Clarita Valley Chamber of Commerce has announced the 15th Annual State of the County luncheon will be held June 6 at 11:30 a.m. at The Hyatt Regency Valencia.
https://scvnews.com/june-6-scv-chamber-to-host-15th-annual-state-of-the-county/
A Hundred Years of Climate Data Is on the Verge of Withering Away
date: 2024-04-09, from: Heatmap News
Kathleen Pryer did not watch March Madness this year.
That isn’t unusual in and of itself — Pryer describes herself as “not a basketball person,” though that might still raise a few eyebrows this time of year at Duke University, her place of employment. But the professor of biology has been a bit distracted lately. For the past few months, she’s been on defense, fending off a loss of her own: the pending closure of the school’s herbarium.
A herbarium (or plural, herbaria) is a collection of preserved plants, typically dried and mounted on sheets of rigid paper. The oldest existing collection in the world, the Gherardo Cibo herbarium in Rome, dates back to the mid 1500s; many U.S. collections are well over a century old. Browsing digitized herbaria online, one can easily get sucked in by their unintended whimsy; though the preserved plants are scientific specimens, traditionally collected by botanists to be used in the study of taxonomy during Western biology’s golden age of naming things, the pages remind me more of the pale, beautiful botanical illustrations in my childhood copy of Thumbelina.
Duke’s herbarium turns 103 this year and contains 825,000 specimens, making it one of the largest collections in the country. But back in mid-February, Susan Alberts, Duke’s dean of natural sciences, sent an email to Pryer, who curates the herbarium, and four other associated faculty members to inform them that “it’s in the best interests of both Duke and the herbarium to find a new home or homes for these collections.”
Though there had long been rumblings about the future of Duke’s herbarium — calls for “strategic plans,” hand-wringing about funds, worry about hiring new staff — the news came as both a shock and a slap in the face to the faculty, chief among them Pryer. “It’s some kind of little stinky plot,” she told me, adding, “I didn’t just roll over when it happened. I reached out to absolutely everybody I could think of.”
The news of Duke’s herbarium closure ricocheted through the tight-knit natural sciences community. Mason Heberling, an associate curator in the Section of Botany at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, told me it should be a “wake-up call” for other researchers. The Duke herbarium is prestigious and hardly a “languishing collection,” he explained; researchers and faculty can easily slip into taking their herbaria for granted. “I’ve realized now that a huge part of my job as a curator will need to be explaining why these collections are important,” he said.
Swiftly, botanists and curators came to Duke’s defense. Opinion pieces and quotes decrying Duke’s decision appeared in the pages of The New York Times and Science. A petition went up on Change.org urging the school to reconsider its decision. Online fora burbled with discontent. “This may be the single worst thing to ever happen to Southeastern botany,” one post on Reddit read, with 64 additional comments piling on the administration for being “profit-obsessed business assholes.” “They could probably fund the entire thing with the salary of one head [basketball] coach,” grumbled another commenter.
The criticism of Duke’s decision is rooted in both a romantic nostalgia about herbaria — the same way you might feel fondly about hand-painted globes or cabinets of curiosities — and a very modern sense of scientific urgency. Researchers have only recently started leveraging the collections as invaluable pieces of data in the greater picture of climate change. “Herbaria are, in many ways, one of our best places to understand nature across space, time, and species,” Charles Davis, the curator of vascular plants at the nation’s largest private herbaria, at Harvard University, told me. “These collections are snapshots of events and occurrences in space and time that you just can’t easily replicate anywhere else. In fact, I would argue it’s impossible.”
Think of it this way: Worldwide, there are about 3,600 herbaria located in 193 different countries that collectively hold about 400 million specimens. Botanists estimate as much as half of the planet’s undiscovered flora could be found in herbaria backlogs. Barbara Thiers, the editor of the Index Herbariorum, a digital guide to the world’s collections, told me that when she was the director of the New York Botanical Garden Herbarium, “we had a huge room filled with unidentified species; I think there were 35,000 or 40,000 specimens in there.” That wasn’t for lack of effort — Thiers said that for many of the plant groups, there simply aren’t any working experts or published literature for curators to consult.
Because the climate is changing so fast, many plants in herbaria will go extinct before they’re formally discovered and named, a process known as a “dark extinction.” “It’s a very sobering feeling to touch the leaves of a tree that doesn’t exist anymore,” Erin Zimmerman, an evolutionary biologist and author of the forthcoming book Unrooted: Botany, Motherhood, and the Fight to Save an Old Science, told me, recalling coming across such a specimen in an herbarium while doing her own research. She likened herbaria to a library, but in her description I also heard echoes of a church: “The specimens are sometimes very old; you have to be very gentle with them, which just adds to the sense of holding something precious,” she went on.
Dwindling biodiversity is only the most obvious way herbaria are critical to 21st-century science. “Phenology, whether it’s when plants flower or when birds migrate, is one of the most important signals of climate change response,” Davis, the Harvard curator, said. Still, our long-term datasets aren’t very robust; research on how plants are changing with warming climates typically dates back only 25 to 30 years, tends to concentrate on the U.S. and Western Europe, and centers on easily observable phenomena, like the leafing out of woody trees. Researchers can turn to herbaria for centuries-old records of where certain plants grew and when they flowered, helping to bridge gaps in our understanding.
Heberling, of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, tracks environmental changes in his research, but he didn’t start using herbaria until well after he’d obtained his Ph.D. Only then did he realize “herbarium specimens are incredible archives of the past,” he told me.
“You can look at the tiny pores, the stomata, on the leaves” of a plant in a herbarium and “see how that has changed over time with increased carbon dioxide,” Heberling said. Scientists have even used this method to create CO2 records.
Admittedly, climate science is still a relatively cutting-edge use case for the herbarium; according to Davis’ research, “global change biology” remains one of the least popular ways to leverage herbaria, well behind “taxonomic monographs” and “species distributions” that still dominate the field. Still, “there are things that, five to 10 years ago, I’d never even imagined we’d be doing today with herbarium specimens,” he told me.
As a result, Duke’s herbarium closure has made some question the university’s commitment to climate research — something that Alberts, the school’s natural sciences dean, emphatically refuted when I raised the question with her. She told me that a rough search revealed that only 23 of the 2,000 papers published by Duke researchers over the past few decades on climate change contained the word “herbarium” anywhere in them. “With my knowledge about all of the climate change research that’s been going on at Duke, the herbarium is not really central to whether or not Duke studies climate change,” she said.
For her part, Pryer has bristled at the administration’s insinuations that the herbarium is of limited use to students and faculty on campus. “You don’t measure a collection by who uses it,” she told me. “As I’ve been naughty enough to say, it’s not a toilet. People outside — the global community — uses it. That’s how you measure its value; things like 90 refereed publications a year [across all disciplines] cite the Duke collections.” Pryer can quickly tick off the climate projects that have come through the herbarium’s halls, including her recent supervision of a local high schooler’s research paper that found the pink lady’s slipper is flowering in the area 17 days earlier than it used to.
Duke is “not an appropriate home for a herbarium that is this large and valuable” for a number of reasons, according to Alberts, ranging from the need to hire new faculty to manage it (Pryer and several of her colleagues are approaching retirement) to the collection’s current building needing renovations. “I have had people email me saying, ‘I know you have enough money, I know you have the facilities.’ I’m like, ‘I’m sorry, you should tell me who you’re talking to, because we don’t,’” Alberts said. She added that she plans to be personally involved in finding the right home for Duke’s herbarium over the next several years.
After all, it’s not like the potential untapped climate records in the Duke collection are being destroyed (though both Pryer and Davis told me they’ve had deans wonder aloud if they could be, since many herbaria are now digitized). The goal is only to move the collection somewhere where it might be better utilized.
Thiers, though, said this is exactly what makes the natural science community so alarmed. As the collection is split up, ideally, the Index Herbariorum would record where Duke’s specimens get sent so scientists can still find them. But when new collections absorb the materials, curators will weed out duplicates, sending unneeded pages elsewhere — at which point specimens can fall between the cracks. “Before you know it, individual specimens will be lost,” Thiers said. “I can almost guarantee that as these secondary moves happen, people will not keep up with the database records.”
There is also a worst-case scenario everyone seemed nervous to mention: that Duke’s collection, in whole or in part, will end up in storage somewhere. Herbarium specimens are extremely susceptible to insect damage and must be kept in expensive, climate-controlled cabinets and rooms. “If they’re putting boxes in a storage storeroom someplace, they’ll be worthless in no time,” Thiers warned. The unidentified plants and uncollected climate data — all of it could be lost. And the cruelest part? Scientists wouldn’t even know what they are losing; it’s a dark extinction of a dark extinction.
When I spoke with Alberts, she said there were no updates on the administration’s plans for the herbarium. She expressed sympathy, though, for the faculty who oppose the administration’s decision. The herbarium “is their life’s work, and it’s important that they have a voice in this process,” she said.
Pryer is determined to keep fighting, even if this isn’t exactly how she’d pictured spending her golden years at Duke. “It’s having an impact on my research and on my health,” she told me. “It’s been pretty unrelenting. I’m anxious for something to resolve.”
She looked tired. There was a faculty meeting later in the day, and she hoped she’d be able to get more clarity about the administration’s decision then. “I don’t want this to go on forever,” she said. “But I also don’t want there to be a decision that makes Duke look insane.”
https://heatmap.news/climate/duke-herbarium-climate-science
BYD sold over 360,000 Seagull EV models in under a year as its cheapest electric car
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
An EV for under $10,000? After selling nearly 35,000 Seagull models in March, cumulative sales of BYD’s cheapest electric car topped 360,000. And that’s in less than 12 months since it launched.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/byd-sold-over-360000-models-cheapest-electric-car/
New NASA Strategy Envisions Sustainable Future for Space Operations
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
To address a rapidly changing space operating environment and ensure its preservation for generations to come, NASA released the first part of its integrated Space Sustainability Strategy, on Tuesday advancing the agency’s role as a global leader on this crucial issue. “The release of this strategy marks true progress for NASA on space sustainability,” said […]
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
2008: Introducing bit.ly — the incredible professional’s URL-shortener. A lot of people don't know this was my launch. Unfortunately the product didn't continue on the path I wanted for it.
https://switchabit.wordpress.com/2008/07/08/bitly/
@Dave Winer’s Scripting News (date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s Scripting News)
BTW, straight – everything Kara Swisher claims to be, the insider with the best view of the industry, they got that wrong. The things that matter happen far away from her conferences and dinners. It’s as if Silicon Valley were Hollywood. To some people it is. But the big changes are never recognized by those people until they’re juggernauts. They don’t make the changes. They soak them up and devour them. They best of the people she writes about are not creators, they’re pirates.
http://scripting.com/2024/04/09.html#a164245
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Scripting News: On Tesla, Nazis, X and the Macintosh of cars.
http://scripting.com/2024/04/09/160339.html
Appeals court rejects Trump’s latest attempt to delay April 15 hush money criminal trial
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
NEW YORK — A New York appeals court judge Tuesday rejected former President Donald Trump’s latest bid to delay his hush money criminal trial while he fights a gag order. Barring further court action, the ruling clears the way for jury selection to begin next week.
Justice Cynthia Kern’s ruling is yet another loss for Trump, who has tried repeatedly to get the trial postponed. Jury selection is set to start Monday.
Trump’s lawyers wanted the trial delayed until a full panel of appellate court judges could hear arguments on lifting or modifying a gag order that bans him from making public statements about jurors, witnesses and others connected to the hush-money case.
The presumptive Republican nominee’s lawyers argue the gag order is an unconstitutional curb on Trump’s free speech rights while he’s campaigning for president and fighting criminal charges.
“The First Amendment harms arising from this gag order right now are irreparable,” Trump lawyer Emil Bove said at an emergency hearing Tuesday in the state’s mid-level appeals court.
Bove argued that Trump shouldn’t be muzzled while critics, including his former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen and porn actor Stormy Daniels, routinely assail him. Both are key prosecution witnesses.
Bove also argued that the order unconstitutionally restricts Trump’s critiques of the case — and, with them, his ability to speak to the voting public and its right to hear from him.
Steven Wu, the appellate chief for the Manhattan district attorney’s office, countered that there is a “public interest in protecting the integrity of the trial.”
“What we are talking about here is the defendant’s uncontested history of making inflammatory, denigrating” comments about people involved in the case, Wu said. “This is not a political debate. These are insults.”
He said prosecutors already have had trouble getting some witnesses to testify “because they know what their names in the press may lead to.” Wu didn’t identify the witnesses but noted they included people who would testify about record-keeping practices.
The gag order still affords Trump “free rein to talk about a host of issues,” noting that he can comment on Judge Juan M. Merchan and District Attorney Alvin Bragg and “raise political arguments as he sees fit.” Trump has repeatedly lambasted Bragg, a Democrat, and the judge.
Merchan issued the gag order last month at prosecutors’ urging, then expanded it last week to prohibit comments about his own family after Trump lashed out on social media at the judge’s daughter, a Democratic political consultant, and made what the court system said were false claims about her.
Tuesday was the second of back-to-back days for Trump’s lawyers in the appeals court. Associate Justice Lizbeth González on Monday rejected their request to delay the trial while Trump seeks to move his case out of heavily Democratic Manhattan.
Trump’s lawyers framed their gag order appeal as a lawsuit against Merchan. In New York, judges can be sued to challenge some decisions under a state law known as Article 78.
Trump has used the tactic before, including against the judge in his recent New York civil fraud trial in an unsuccessful last-minute bid to delay that case last fall and again when that judge imposed a gag order barring trial participants from commenting publicly on court staffers. That order came after Trump smeared the judge’s principal law clerk in a social media post.
A sole appeals judge lifted the civil trial gag order, but an appellate panel restored it two weeks later.
Trump’s hush-money criminal case involves allegations that he falsified his company’s records to hide the nature of payments to Cohen, who helped him bury negative stories during his 2016 campaign. Cohen’s activities included paying Daniels $130,000 to suppress her claims of an extramarital sexual encounter with Trump years earlier.
Trump pleaded not guilty last year to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. He has denied having a sexual encounter with Daniels. His lawyers argue the payments to Cohen were legitimate legal expenses.
Trump has made numerous attempts to get the trial postponed.
Last week, as Merchan swatted away various requests to delay the trial, Trump renewed his request for the judge to step aside from the case. The judge rejected a similar request last August.
Trump’s lawyers allege the judge is biased against him and has a conflict of interest because of his daughter Loren’s work as president of Authentic Campaigns, a firm with clients that have included President Joe Biden and other Democrats. Trump’s attorneys complained the expanded gag order was shielding the Merchans “from legitimate public criticism.”
Merchan had long resisted imposing a gag order. At Trump’s arraignment in April 2023, he admonished Trump not to make statements that could incite violence or jeopardize safety, but stopped short of muzzling him. At a subsequent hearing, Merchan noted Trump’s “special” status as a former president and current candidate and said he was “bending over backwards” to ensure Trump has every opportunity “to speak in furtherance of his candidacy.”
Merchan became increasingly wary of Trump’s rhetoric disrupting the historic trial as it grew near. In issuing the gag order, he said his obligation to ensuring the integrity of the proceedings outweighed First Amendment concerns.
Trump reacted on social media that the gag order was “illegal, un-American, unConstitutional” and said Merchan was “wrongfully attempting to deprive me of my First Amendment Right to speak out against the Weaponization of Law Enforcement” by Democratic rivals.
Trump suggested without evidence that Merchan’s decision-making was influenced by his daughter’s professional interests and made a claim, later repudiated by court officials, that Loren Merchan had posted a social media photo showing Trump behind bars.
After the outburst, Merchan expanded the gag order April 1 to prohibit Trump from making statements about the judge’s family or Bragg’s family.
“They can talk about me but I can’t talk about them???” Trump reacted on his Truth Social platform.
Despite two previous court victories, Tesla settles third Autopilot liability case
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Amount sealed because it would result in ‘serious injury,’ say company lawyers
Tesla has settled an outstanding Autopilot fatality lawsuit before the case could end up before a jury, but on the condition that the settlement amount never sees the light of day.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/tesla_settles_autopilot_case/
BMW And Rimac Sign Partnership For Next-Gen EV Battery Packs
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
Rimac has supplied its innovative EV tech to big automakers before, which in turn bought significant chunks of the company.
https://insideevs.com/news/715502/bmw-rimac-ev-battery-partnership/
Seeing Totality
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
On April 8, 2024, a NASA photographer captured the total solar eclipse in Dallas. A small part of North America, from Mexico’s Pacific coast to the Atlantic coast of Newfoundland, Canada, saw the total solar eclipse, while all North America and parts of Central America and Europe saw a partial solar eclipse. The next total […]
https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/seeing-totality/
Through Astronaut Eyes, Virtual Reality Propels Gateway Forward
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
NASA astronauts are using virtual reality to explore Gateway. When they slip on their headsets, they’re not just seeing the station—they’re in it, meticulously surveying every detail and offering crucial insights on design and functionality.
https://www.nasa.gov/general/through-astronaut-eyes-virtual-reality-propels-gateway-forward/
Fairphone’s Fairbuds are true wireless earbuds with repairable design and user-replaceable batteries
date: 2024-04-09, from: Liliputing
Dutch smartphone maker Fairphone has made a name for itself by building sustainable products that are meant to last a long time. That’s because the company’s phones have user-repairable designs and the company sells spare parts (and sometimes even hardware upgrades). Last year the company expanded into the wireless audio space with the launch of […]
The post Fairphone’s Fairbuds are true wireless earbuds with repairable design and user-replaceable batteries appeared first on Liliputing.
On Tesla, Nazis, X and the Macintosh of cars
date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s Scripting News
I’m not sure I’d buy a Tesla today because of Musk’s politics which he puts in our face, thus influencing other people to inflict their nightmares on us. I bet in the end Musk will be responsible for a lot of people dying.
On the other hand, I love the car, and thus love the people who developed it, who I don’t know. I hope they’re not Nazis. I don’t see how someone who could design such a thing as a Tesla Model Y, in 2021, the year I bought mine, could be anything like that.
This car is going to be copied. There will be a generation of cars that comes along, some that have not arrived yet, that will have to stand up to a comparison to a Tesla. This is the original.
To be alive when such a product comes out and not own one, that would be hard for me to do. I don’t think my “support” of Tesla could mean that much. The money is already spent. It costs nothing to maintain the car (one of its innovations).
It’s
like the Macintosh of cars. I would have owned a Macintosh in 1984 even
if I wasn’t one of Apple’s top developers. I also know that Steve Jobs
didn’t design the machine, he stole it from people at Xerox who did.
Apple refined the idea, made it practical, like a Tesla, commercial.
That’s a huge accomplishment, commercializing and humanizing a concept
like the Mac was harder than inventing, imho. I have a feeling that
Tesla must stand on the shoulders of giants in a similar way.
Tesla is always sending me emails, which I usually read, but last week I got one urging me to join X. I thought what bullshit. I don’t want these products connected. There was a time, not that long ago, that I would have thought a car hooked up to Twitter as a fantastic and futuristic idea, but now, I think it means no one of principle, certainly no one who is a target of Nazis could work at Tesla in the future. And those are some of the brightest people out there.
Meanwhile I’m looking at other company’s EVs with lust. I might like a Kia or a BMW. If you’re making a consumer product, Nazi branding is not a good look. And X is becoming a stinker too.
PS: I was inspired to write this piece by one written by Ben Wurdmuller posted yesterday. I’ve had much the same feeling about FSD. This piece started out to be about FSD, but the preamble, like the one in his piece, got so long I decided to post it first as its own piece.
http://scripting.com/2024/04/09/160339.html?title=onTeslaNazisXAndTheMacintoshOfCars
Acer unveils two new 14 inch gaming laptops: Predator Helios Neo 14 and Nitro 14
date: 2024-04-09, from: Liliputing
Acer has introduced new Nitro and Predator Helios-branded gaming laptops set to hit the streets this spring and summer including two reasonably compact models that pack premium specs into small spaces. The new Acer Predator Helios Neo 14 is a 4.2 pound gaming laptop with up to a 3,072 x 1920 pixel, 165 Hz display, an […]
The post Acer unveils two new 14 inch gaming laptops: Predator Helios Neo 14 and Nitro 14 appeared first on Liliputing.
Google joins the custom server CPU crowd with Arm-based Axion chips
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Neoverse V2 cores available in GCP later this year
Cloud Next Google lifted the veil on its long-rumored Arm datacenter processor, dubbed Axion, during its Cloud Next event in Las Vegas on Tuesday.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/google_custom_cpu/
Study Says 55% Of Used EVs Were Listed For Less Than $30,000 In Q2 2024
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
The trend of falling second-hand EV prices continues into the second quarter of 2024.
https://insideevs.com/news/715413/study-ued-evs-price-drops/
Water, Water, Everywhere – Hydroelectric Power Plants in the National Register
date: 2024-04-09, from: National Archives, Text Message blog
Hydroelectric Power is one of the largest sources of renewable energy and is a popular means of providing power, as long as there was a water source and there was the means to construct a plant to harness the water. There are more that four hundred properties in the records of the National Register (National … Continue reading Water, Water, Everywhere – Hydroelectric Power Plants in the National Register
Intel Gaudi’s third and final hurrah is an AI accelerator built to best Nvidia’s H100
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Goodbye dedicated AI hardware and hello to a GPU that fuses Xe graphics DNA with Habana chemistry
Intel Vision On paper, Intel’s Habana Gaudi3 AI accelerators don’t look like they’re ready to take on Nvidia’s H100 thanks to older process tech and slower HBM memory delivering fewer FLOPS. But Gelsinger’s gang insists its latest parts can not only go toe-to-toe with the H100 in inference, but best it in training.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/intel_gaudi_ai_accelerator/
Kristina Wong’s ‘Overlord’ mines laughs from scars pf Pandemic
date: 2024-04-09, from: San Jose Mercury News
Comedic solo show about a mask-making project recalls the unsettling early days of Covid outbreak.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/09/kristina-wongs-overlord-mines-laughs-from-scars-pf-pandemic/
Tesla Will Spend 10 Billion Training Full Self-Driving
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
Tesla’s bill for compute, storage, and networking hardware alone will hit more than $10 billion in 2024.
https://insideevs.com/news/715366/tesla-10-billion-self-driving/
Number of Distances Separating Points Has a New Bound
date: 2024-04-09, from: Quanta Magazine
Mathematicians have struggled to prove Falconer’s Conjecture, a simple, but far-reaching, hypothesis about the distances between points. They’re finally getting close.The post Number of Distances Separating Points Has a New Bound first appeared on Quanta Magazine
https://www.quantamagazine.org/number-of-distances-separating-points-has-a-new-bound-20240409/
Arizona Governor Strikes Down Age Verification Bill, Says It Violates First Amendment
date: 2024-04-09, from: 404 Media Group
“While we look for a solution, it should be bipartisan and work within the bounds of the First Amendment, which this bill does not,” Arizona governor Katie Hobbs wrote.
https://www.404media.co/arizona-governor-veto-age-verification-bill/
24 hours in AI news
date: 2024-04-09, from: Gary Marcus blog
A bunch of small but important items in recently-breaking AI news: Tesla settled their lawsuit with the Huang family over Walter Huang’s death, for an undisclosed amount of money. “Although Huang’s family acknowledges he was distracted while the car was driving, they argued Tesla is at fault because it falsely marketed Autopilot as self-driving software. They alleged Tesla knew that Autopilot was not ready for prime time and had flaws that could make its use unsafe.” The settlement is striking in part because Musk had previously said this
https://garymarcus.substack.com/p/24-hours-in-ai-news
Code in Context: How AI Can Help Improve Our Documentation
date: 2024-04-09, from: Jonudell blog
Here’s the latest installment in the series on working with LLMS: https://thenewstack.io/code-in-context-how-ai-can-help-improve-our-documentation/. Writing documentation from scratch is as uncommon as writing code from scratch. More typically, you’re updating or expanding or refactoring existing docs. My expectation was that an LLM-powered tool primed with both code and documentation could provide a powerful assist, and Unblocked did. … Continue reading Code in Context: How AI Can Help Improve Our Documentation
https://blog.jonudell.net/2024/04/09/code-in-context-how-ai-can-help-improve-our-documentation/
What Climate Change Is Doing to Our Brains
date: 2024-04-09, from: Heatmap News
Thinking is physical. Thankfully, one of the many wonderful things about the human brain is that we don’t have to confront this unsettling fact very much — that the environment around us shapes our perceptions and reactions, that all human experience is the result of secreted hormones and synaptic transmission. In other words, our brains let us think we’re in charge.
Unfortunately, as with so many other things, climate change is interfering. “As the environment changes, you should expect to change too,” writes author, neuroscientist, and Grist senior data scientist Clayton Page Aldern in his gripping new book, The Weight of Nature: How a Changing Climate Changes Our Brains. “It is the job of your brain to model the world as it is,” he goes on. “And the world is mutating.”
You may already be familiar with some of his examples — that the heat can make us dumber and more aggressive, and that people who survive traumatic weather events can get post-traumatic stress disorder. But Aldern’s book — which, in spite of its author’s technical background, is immensely readable and literary — pushes far past the familiar, touching on topics as wide-ranging as brain-eating amoebas, language death, and free will. The common theme throughout, though, is that climate is our unseen “puppeteer.”
Our conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
You use the phrase “the weight of nature” in several contexts throughout the book. It made me think of both Altas, as in “the weight on our shoulders,” and also the idea of determinism that you get into a bit. At what point in the writing process did you come up with the title?
It was early on that the title came to me, but it was not the original title. I’ve been working on this project for six or seven years, and initially my working title was something awful like Nature’s Marionette, which sought to communicate this notion of forcing our hands — the puppetmaster behind our decision-making.
But I wanted to be able to communicate this feeling of being guided by the environment — in addition to carrying said burden — because it felt like weight. It does feel heavy, and heaviness does a lot of things, including forcing our hands.
Is there something about brains that makes them uniquely vulnerable to climate change? I ask because I’m sure books could be written about how climate change hurts our hearts or lungs, too. But it seems to impact our brains in a variety of terrifying forms.
Hearts do one thing: They beat. Brains are always reaching outward, and so, by extension, they’re enmeshed in the same manner in which one can imagine our entire bodies to be enmeshed in this “environment.”
More specifically, in addition to the reaching-out action, brains are actively modeling the world around us. That is what they do. This notion of having an active organ, as opposed to a somewhat passive organ, makes the difference because brains are always integrating new information about the world. And the world is changing.
As we come to terms with this changing world — and when I use the phrase “come to terms,” I’m not seeking to deploy some kind of intellectual or emotional metaphor here. I mean, on a biophysical level, as we’re coming to terms with these changes — then neurochemical changes result accordingly. We respond in kind. Certainly, our other organs are adaptive to various degrees, but the whole point of the brain is its adaptive nature, right? It seeks to model the world around us, and it implements change through a system known as neuroplasticity. It is an organ that is built for modeling and integrating change. And so, is it any wonder that climate change acts directly on this organ in ways it may not act on others?
The chapter about Karl Friston and the give-and-take of perception — in which you write, “our actions are the world’s sensations, and our sensations are the world’s actions” — completely blew my mind.
I haven’t even told this to my editor, but I think if I’m ever granted the privilege of writing a book again, I might try to pitch a biography of Karl Friston. His research is unbelievably interesting.
Is his work well-known among neuroscientists, or is it kind of fringe even within the community?
That’s a fabulous question, and I’ll tell you why: Karl is one of the most cited neuroscientists of all time, but most neuroscientists have not heard of him. The reason that paradox is true is because, early in his career, he developed some of the basic algorithmic technology underlying functional resonance in functional magnetic resonance imaging: fMRI. And so, anytime anybody uses fMRI, which most neuroscientists do, there’s this casual Fristonian citation that goes back to his early work.
Far fewer people have paid attention to his groundbreaking work on what’s called the free energy hypothesis. If you Google, like, “the most influential neuroscientists of all time,” he’s always on these lists, but nobody knows who he is. Well, nobody is a stretch; he’s reasonably well-known in sub-communities. But by and large, he’s such an abstract thinker, and his material is so difficult to internalize, that most people who are attracted to his work fall into the neuro-theory community, computational neuroscientists, theoretical neuroscientists — and that’s, frankly, the vast minority of neuroscientists. So he is somewhat of an unknown entity, which is just astounding because he has literally been in the running for the Nobel.
Something that struck me was how many gaps there are in the science of understanding our own brains — we often seem to know the general region where thoughts or impulses originate but not quite the mechanics of how they work. Are there certain mysteries about our consciousness and perception that might always remain slightly out of our reach?
There’s a huge body of research that seeks to address whether or not the question of consciousness, and understanding it, is unravelable at all. This is known as the hard problem of consciousness. Have we made progress in our understanding of consciousness over the past 100 or 200 years? Well, almost certainly, yes. And in neuroscience, we’ve come closer to an understanding of what perception is and what consciousness is.
Will another 20 years or so get us closer to an ultimate, grounded, and internalized rational scientific representation there of? Maybe! But there are also people today who argue with just as much empirical backing that the notion of solving consciousness — the notion of, basically, a self coming to understand itself — is a logically impossible act.
I’m not a consciousness researcher, so I’m not sure if I have enough background to really say that I’ve made my mind up. But there are certainly folks out there who say consciousness is not something that’s solvable, it’s not something that we will ever understand in the same materialistic terms that, perhaps, we understand the heart.
I’m going to be obnoxious and ask the AI question. You didn’t really get into the possibility and pitfalls of technology, but I’m wondering if it was back of mind at all while you were writing?
I’m going to give you an obnoxious answer. In fact, it’s a decades-old obnoxious answer. When I’m thinking about this stuff, my instinct is to think about technology in terms of the manners in which it removes us from nature. So much of the promise in this area of research — and I do think there’s promise, I don’t think it’s all doom and gloom — is that this intimate relationship we have with the planet is also that which can be leveraged to help mediate some of these detrimental effects.
There’s a fabulous book from a couple of years ago, The Nature Fix, by Florence Williams; I have come to understand my book as its dark version. The Nature Fix details all the manners in which interacting with nature, as opposed to the built environment, is essential for mental, psychological, spiritual, and neurological health.
This is an obnoxious answer because it’s the classic “Oh, kids are all looking at their phones!” But I think that’s real — the handheld devices and the omniscience of the all-knowing screen, which, perhaps we can extend that to the LLMs. As it were, there’s this suite of technologies that mediates our relationship both with knowledge writ large and the broader environment outside of ourselves. In my estimate, it filters the world in a way that I suspect is preventing us from interacting with some of the benefits that the environment has to offer.
The same things that make our brains incredible — their ability to adapt, create, and use language — are also what allowed us to invent the combustion engine, organize global commodities markets, and design machines for fracking. In a sense, the climate fight requires beating back against the weight and consequences of our own brains, right?
When I think about this question, it’s less about “how can we ensure we’re using the tools of evolution, the powers of the brain, for good,” and more about coming to terms with the fact that something like free will doesn’t exist.
There’s this thinker, Timothy Morton, who writes a lot about our enmeshment with the environment and the degree to which one cannot separate the self from the greater universe. Taken to its extreme, that thinking — which I think is very powerful — implies that what we need to wrap our heads around and come to terms with is the fact that we’re not really making decisions, per se. It’s just a universe of particles in motion. So grappling with what Morton calls the ecological thought, grappling with this notion of determinism and enmeshment, and trying to suss out the moral responsibilities that fall out of that relationship — that, to me, is a worthy task and, frankly, an unsolved problem.
As a neuroscientist working in the climate space, what keeps you up at night?
The 20-year timeline keeps me up at night. A lot of the research that we’re coming to terms with today is going to make itself known on a much more visceral level over the next 20 to 50 years. If it is in fact the case that cyanobacterial blooms are releasing a neurotoxin that is spurring an increased risk of ALS, that neurodegenerative disease isn’t necessarily going to manifest in people whom it is likely to affect for a number of years. We’re not going to see in tangible, visceral terms a corresponding spike in this disease in the general population for another couple of decades.
I just published a piece in The Guardian about some of these effects, and one of the researchers I interviewed for that piece basically said what I’m trying to communicate now, which is: We’re in the midst of a grand experiment. It’s not like a lab where you’ve got a rat, and you’re selectively exposing it to one toxin over the course of some fixed time period and measuring the results. The lab that we’re in is the Earth and we are exposed to climatic and environmental stressors in this soup, chronically, for years and years, and in unknown quantities. At some point, we’re going to look around and say, “Oh, this is really bad. We should do something about this.” And for many people, it will be too late.
What gives you hope?
I don’t like hope. I think that hope breeds complacency — or, at least, false hope does. I tend personally not to look for vectors of hope per se, which is not to say that I’m a pessimist or a nihilist or anything like that. I look for climate solutions, for example, or sources of resilience, or stories of the capacity of the human spirit that inspire me with a feeling of desire. I’m interested in having images out there in the world that point my compass toward a future that I would like to realize.
https://heatmap.news/culture/weight-of-nature-climate-brain
Lawyer Scenes
date: 2024-04-09, from: John August blog
John and Craig lawyer up with criminal defense attorney Ken White (aka Popehat) to look at legal scenes in movies and TV, and separate the tropes from the truth. How do lawyers actually prepare a case? Will they meet a client in jail? Do they need to gather evidence themselves? And what happens when they […] The post Lawyer Scenes first appeared on John August.
https://johnaugust.com/2024/lawyer-scenes
Lucid (LCID) sneaks out record first quarter EV deliveries as price cuts take effect
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
EV maker Lucid (LCID) set a record with EV deliveries hitting a new high in Q1 following significant price cuts. With production slipping, will it be enough for Lucid to hit its targets in 2024?
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/lucid-lcid-sneaks-out-record-q1-ev-deliveries-amid-price-cuts/
US top military leaders face Congress over Pentagon budget and questions on Israel, Ukraine support
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
Washington — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Charles Brown Jr. testified on Capitol Hill on Tuesday about the Pentagon’s $850 billion budget for 2025 as questions remained as to whether lawmakers will support current spending needs for Israel or Ukraine.
The Senate hearing was the first time lawmakers on both sides were able to question the Pentagon’s top civilian and military leadership on the administration’s Israel strategy following the country’s deadly strike on World Central Kitchen humanitarian aid workers in Gaza. It also follows continued desperate pleas by Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy that if the U.S. does not help soon, Kyiv will lose the war to Russia.
In their opening statements, both Austin and Brown emphasized that their 2025 budget is still shaped with the military’s long-term strategic goal in mind — to ready forces and weapons for a potential future conflict with China. About $100 billion of this year’s request is set aside for new space, nuclear weapons and cyber warfare systems the military says it must invest in now before Beijing’s capabilities surpass it.
But the conflicts in Ukraine and Israel are challenging a deeply-divided Congress and have resulted in months of delays in getting last year’s defense budget through, which was only passed by lawmakers a few weeks ago.
Austin’s opening remarks were temporarily interrupted by protesters lifting a Palestinian flag and shouting at him to stop sending weapons to Israel. “Stop the genocide,” they said, as they lifted their hands, stained in red, in the air.
The Pentagon scraped together about $300 million in ammunition to send to Kyiv in March but cannot send more without Congress’ support, and a separate $60 billion supplemental bill that would fund those efforts has been stalled for months.
“The price of U.S. leadership is real. But it is far lower than the price of U.S. abdication,” Austin told the senators.
If Kyiv falls, it could imperil Ukraine’s Baltic NATO member neighbors and potentially drag U.S. troops into a prolonged European war. If millions die in Gaza due to starvation, it could enrage Israel’s Arab neighbors and lead to a much wider, deadlier Middle East conflict — one that could also bring harm to U.S. troops and to U.S. relations in the region for decades.
The Pentagon has urged Congress to support new assistance for Ukraine for months, to no avail, and has tried to walk a perilous line between defending its ally Israel and maintaining ties with key regional Arab partners. Israel’s actions in Gaza have been used as a rallying cry by factions of Iranian-backed militant groups, including the Houthis in Yemen and Islamic Resistance groups across Iraq and Syria, to strike at U.S. interests. Three U.S. service members have already been killed as drone and missile attacks increased against U.S. bases in the region.
Six U.S. military ships with personnel and components to build a humanitarian aid pier are also still en route to Gaza but questions remain as to how food that arrives at the pier will be safely distributed inside the devastated territory.
Lawmakers are also seeing demands at home. For months, a handful of its far-right members have kept Congress from approving additional money or weapons for Ukraine until domestic needs like curbing the crush of migrants at the southern U.S. border are addressed. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson is already facing a call to oust him as speaker by Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene because Johnson is trying to work out a compromise that would move the Ukraine aid forward.
On Israel, the World Central Kitchen strike led to a shift in tone from President Joe Biden on how Israel must protect civilian life in Gaza and drove dozens of House Democrats, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, to call on Biden to halt weapons transfers to Israel.
Half the population of Gaza is starving and on the brink of famine due to Israel’s tight restrictions on allowing aid trucks through.
Former Branham athletic director declines teaching reassignment, uncertain about future
date: 2024-04-09, from: San Jose Mercury News
Landon Jacobs: “I’m not sure what my next step is regarding other AD roles to be honest. We’ll get there soon.”
The $79,995 Base GMC Hummer EV Is Reportedly Dead
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
With the EV2 trim reportedly out of the picture, the cheapest Hummer EV starts at $98,845.
https://insideevs.com/news/715457/base-gmc-hummer-ev-dead-report/
MV Agusta’s Enduro Veloce Is a Faster Rally Machine
date: 2024-04-09, from: Ride Apart, Electric Motorcycle News
It’ll certainly be a stylish way to explore the backcountry and by-roads.
https://www.rideapart.com/news/715371/mv-agusta-enduro-veloce-price-specs-new/
The Little Garden
date: 2024-04-09, from: David Rosenthal’s blog
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The reason I’m now able to tell this story is that Tom Jennings, the moving spirit behind the ISP has two posts describing the history of The Little Garden, which was the name the ISP had adopted (from a Chinese restaurant in Palo Alto) when I joined it in May 1993. Tom’s perspective from the ISP’s point of view contrasts with my perspective — that of a fairly early customer enhanced by information via e-mail from John Gilmore and Tim Pozar, who were both involved far earlier than I.
Jennings starts his story:
Once upon a time, three little businesses wanted a connection to the ARPAnet/internet. The year was 1990 or 1991. John Gilmore, John Romke[y], and Trusted Information Systems (TIS) split the $15K or so it took to get a leased-line and 3COM Brouters to Alternet, with what today you’d call fractional T1. An additional 56K leased line and Brouter brought the ’net up to Gilmore’s house, Toad Hall, in San Francisco.The three little businesses were Cygnus Support (John Gilmore), Epilogue Technology (John Romkey) and Trusted Information Systems (Steve Crocker). AlterNet was run by Rick Adams, whom Wikipedia justly describes as an “Internet pioneer”. He founded UUNET Technologies:
In the mid-1990s, UUNET was the fastest-growing ISP, outpacing MCI and Sprint. At its peak, Internet traffic was briefly doubling every few months, which translates to 10x growth each year.John Gilmore, a truly wonderful person, had many friends. So what happened was:
As time went on, friends of theirs wanted in on this rare and exciting ’net connection, resulting in Tim Pozar putting an old PC running Phil Karn’s KA9Q/NOS program, an amateur radio router capable of TCP/IP, onto Toad Hall’s ethernet. Tim installed a pair of modems, then dialed in once and stayed connected 24 hrs/day (Pacific Bell never said you couldn’t do that…)Once Tim showed that it was possible, this idea took off:
Eventually the NOS box was full, and more friends wanted in, but everyone was too busy to deal with the hassle.In 1989 Gilmore had co-founded Cygnus Support, whose tagline was “Making free software affordable”. TLG got started in August 1990 with the three businesses’ nodes on a 56K leased line. One was at Cygnus first office in an apartment complex on University Avenue in Palo Alto. Gilmore and other Cygnus employees had apartments there, so they used 10BASE2 coaxial cable Ethernet to distribute the Internet around the complex. Gilmore notes that they used “nonstandard thin 50-ohm coax in the expansion joints across the driveways when needed”. Pozar notes that they paved over the coax!
Somehow, in September 1992, Pozar and Gilmore and I worked out a deal where, I would maintain the thing, collect money to build more NOS boxes and contribute to the monthly Alternet bill, install more people, and get (1) a free connection to the internet and (2) a slice off the top after it exceeded N connections.
By that December, there were enough connections in place that I was pocketing $420/month. By March 1993 there were 11 modem-connected members (as we fancied ourselves).
Gilmore was paying more than $300/mo for modem phone lines supporting the Alt Usenet groups, and realized that for less than that he could have a 56K line from Cygnus to his basement in SF. That led to Pozar and Rich Morin’s Canta Forda Computer installing the old PC and becoming the first to use the permanent local call idea.
I knew Gilmore from the early days of Sun Microsystems (he was employee #5), so I first found out about the Point of Presence (PoP) in his basement in late 1992 and really wanted to join in. Alas, there was a snag — the reason the idea worked was that local phone calls were free. From my home in Palo Alto to Toad Hall was a toll call, making it impossibly expensive. But in May 1993 I found out about the PoP on University, 8 blocks from my apartment.
I purchased:
- A phone line from Pacific Bell at the PoP.
- A second phone line at my apartment.
- A pair of Zyxel 9.6Kb modems, one for the PoP and one for my apartment.
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As I recall it ran happily until I passed the apartment on to my step-daughter’s family in summer 2000. Seven years of impeccable service. By that time I was working on the LOCKSS program at Stanford, and we had DSL service from Stanford IT. So I went from an ISP with great tech support to an ISP with great support. Then as I relate in ISP Monopolies in September 2001 Palo Alto’s Fiber-to-the-Home trial went live and I had 10Mbit bi-directional fiber with great support from Palo Alto Utilities. Since the trial ended our ISP has been Sonic, first over 3/1Mbit DSL and now over gigabit fiber. So we are really used to having great support from our ISP.
TLG was an astonishing success. From something like $2000/month in December 1992 it grew “an average of 12% per month from Jan94 through July96” when it had “a monthly gross of about $125,000.00 until:
Luckily we were bought by Best Internet Communications, Mountain View; they had money, marketing, and a non-burned-out management; we had a solid locked-in customer base and positive cash flow.Best turned out to be a pretty good ISP too.
Jennings’ explanations for TLG’s success are interesting. First, technical competence:
Edgar Nielsen almost single-handedly built the technical infrastructure that TLGnet ran on. He designed much of the network and routing structure, all of the security (with some help from Stu Grossman), wrote a complete, queryable, shared and remotely-accessible database (included every single modem, router, wire, cable, customer, IP (domain names and IP address allocations), and logical link) in standard and portable tools, installed equipment, built and maintained our unix boxes, put SNMP on every single node (hundreds) and automated the entire ISP technical infrastructure from one end to the other. I doubt many small to mid-size ISPs today have the things Edgar wrote by 1995.Second, good HR:
Another thing of crucial importance to me, and to Deke, Edgar and a lesser extent Gilmore, was hiring from our local communities; we hired principled people, punk and queer writers and organizers, and trained and paid them – pay in scale with effort. Total staff turn-over in three years was probably 20; peak staff was 12. Some 10 of them started out at $8.00/hr, unskilled, ended up with $30,000 salary a year later [1994-1996], and stayed in the industry (at prevailing pay). (And we provided health insurance too. Deke being damned Wobbly may have had some small effect.)Third, an innovative business model starting with their terms and conditions:
…
we treated our staff well, gave them credit for work done, paid them actual money, gave raises and bonuses (upon sale of the business, even some fired employees got small bonus checks). TLGnet wouldn’t have existed without its talented staff!
TLGnet exercises no control whatsoever over the content of the information passing through TLGnet. You are free to communicate commercial, noncommercial, personal, questionable, obnoxious, annoying, or any other kind of information, misinformation, or disinformation through our service. You are fully responsible for the privacy of, content of, and liability for your own communications.Jennings explains the business model:
The result was:Essentially, other ISPs restricted use and resale of their connections, in a sort of zero-sum approach. By concentrating on bulk connectivity we at once created a market for our customers to provide the vertical services we didn’t want or couldn’t afford to provide, and built a hard-to-beat solid rep that for a long while locked out direct competitors to our core business; having our prices online and breaking down the leased-line costs and equipment gave us a major one-up economically, technically, and in credible reputation over nearly all other ISPs, big or small.
- Concentrate on bulk, fulltime internet access (leased-line and Frame Relay)
- Keep prices low by providing connectivity only
- Unrestricted use of TLG connectivity
- Encourage resale and vertical-market services
- Full, up-front disclosure of all pricing
- No lock-in contracts
- Unbundle installation costs and eliminate padding
- Full technical disclosure of technical information
Some thought us insane; but in fact our customers didn’t “compete” with us, they provided vertical services we couldn’t or wouldn’t (I guess we did have a business plan). And in fact we set further standards of behavior and policies that other ISPs, including MCI and SprintLink, were obliged to match. Though some, like Alternet and PSI, never did; they skimmed the high-end deep-pockets customers, and we got all the new growth.Gilmore writes:
I would add to the “Busines Model” discussion, that communication costs per-bit dropped dramatically with volume. When you upgraded from 56k bit/sec leased lines to T1 (1,500k bit/sec), you got 24x the bandwidth but it only cost about 4x as much. An upgrade to T3 (45 megabit) provided 30x the bandwidth of a T1, and didn’t cost anything near to 30x as much. So, as your traffic volume grew because you were adding more and more customers, the cost of your basic connection to the rest of the Internet got significantly cheaper (per bit). That economy of scale meant that ISPs who grew could keep affording to upgrade their backbones to handle the traffic growth. Every ISP knew, or figured out, this economics, and they all depended on it. Remember, this was back when there were 2000 ISP’s in the US, mostly local ones. (About 30 of them were getting their Internet service from TLG when we sold it to Best.)There is a fascinating October 29 1996 interview entitled Tim Pozar and Brewster Kahle CHM Interview by Marc Weber. The first part of the interview is all about TLG. In it Brewster Kahle sums up the story (I cleaned up his stream of conciousness a bit):
it took six months of a full-time person to get us on the DARPA net in 1985 … but The Little Garden basically made it so that any old person [could connect] and more than that not just themselves but … enabling other people to create their own ISPs and I don’t know there are 400 ISPs now in the Bay Area in large part because of The Little Garden.
https://blog.dshr.org/2024/04/the-little-garden.html
Making Ultra-fast Electron Measurements in Multiple Directions to Reveal the Secrets of the Aurora
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
The energetic electrons that drive the aurora borealis (the northern lights) have a rich and very dynamic structure that we currently do not fully understand. Much of what we know about these electrons comes from instruments that have fundamental limitations in their ability to sample multiple energies with high time resolution. To overcome these limitations, NASA is using an innovative approach to develop instrumentation that will enhance our measurement capabilities by more than an order of magnitude—revealing a wealth of new information about the amazing physics happening within the aurora.
Two-alarm fire burns Hayward commercial building
date: 2024-04-09, from: San Jose Mercury News
Hayward Fire crews said they contained the blaze in a bit more than an hour.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/09/two-alarm-fire-burns-hayward-commercial-building/
What just happened, what is happening next
date: 2024-04-09, from: One Useful Thing
The tasks AI can do well are expanding rapidly
https://www.oneusefulthing.org/p/what-just-happened-what-is-happening
Article Spotlight: The role of temperature on the development of circadian rhythms in honey bee workers
date: 2024-04-09, from: PeerJ blog
‘AI Instagram Influencers’ Are Deepfaking Their Faces Onto Real Women’s Bodies
date: 2024-04-09, from: 404 Media Group
AI ‘influencers’ on Instagram have racked up hundreds of thousands of followers and millions of views by stealing reels from real women to make the AI seem more “believable.”
https://www.404media.co/ai-influencers-are-deepfaking-their-faces-onto-real-womens-bodies/
Post Office slapped down for late disclosure of documents in Horizon scandal inquiry
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-10, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Evidence from leaders including former CEO Paula Vennells among those handed over at the last minute
Updated The Post Office Horizon inquiry may be forced to recall witnesses after the company delayed disclosing evidence – some relating to communications to and from former chief executive Paula Vennells.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/post_office_horizon_evidence/
The Best Photos and Videos of the 2024 Solar Eclipse
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Jason Kittke’s blog
https://kottke.org/24/04/the-best-photos-and-videos-of-the-2024-solar-eclipse
Attention Walmart shoppers: You may be entitled to compensation
date: 2024-04-09, from: Marketplace Morning Report
Walmart has opted to settle a $45 million class-action lawsuit over allegedly inflating prices for certain products sold by weight, such as produce and meat products. That means if you purchased “weighted goods” from Walmart, you could be eligible for a payout of up to $500. Plus, investors are braced for the release of March’s consumer price index tomorrow, and we examine how funding from the CHIPS Act is being doled out.
Hayward man shot in Oakland
date: 2024-04-09, from: San Jose Mercury News
The shooting happened about 10:22 p.m. Monday in the 600 block of East 10th Street.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/09/hayward-man-shot-in-oakland/
NASA Wallops Launches 3 Rockets During Eclipse in Virginia
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
Three Black Brant IX sounding rockets launched from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia April 8, 2024, during the solar eclipse. The rockets launched for the Atmospheric Perturbations around Eclipse Path (APEP) mission to study the disturbances in the electrified region of Earth’s atmosphere known as the ionosphere created when the Moon eclipses the Sun. […]
https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/nasa-wallops-launches-3-rockets-during-eclipse-in-virginia/
Bay Area college rugby is elite. What will it take for sport to become mainstream at high school level?
date: 2024-04-09, from: San Jose Mercury News
In California high schools, rugby is considered a club sport – and teams are few and far between.
Tesla Settles Autopilot Death Lawsuit Hours Before Trial Began
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
Plus, Cruise gets ready to re-launch its robotaxi service, and Ferrari wants to know more about batteries.
https://insideevs.com/news/715389/tesla-autopilot-death-lawsuit-settled/
More than $3,000 worth of perfume stolen from Los Gatos CVS
date: 2024-04-09, from: San Jose Mercury News
Suspects forced open a locked cabinet to get items.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/09/more-than-3000-worth-of-perfume-stolen-from-los-gatos-cvs/
For Bay Area, a brief warm-up before more rain likely for the weekend
date: 2024-04-09, from: San Jose Mercury News
Temperatures into the 80s are only a tease. By the weekend, it is expected to be chilly and rainy again.
BMW taps electric hypercar specialist Rimac for high-performance EV batteries
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
For its next-gen models, BMW is turning to Croatian electric hypercar specialist Rimac for EV batteries. Rimac’s tech division will supply batteries for BMW’s future electric cars.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/bmw-taps-electric-hypercar-specialist-rimac-ev-batteries/
Qualcomm and Qt partner to supercharge UI development for IoT devices
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Plus: Qualy punts a ‘micro-power’ Wi-Fi system for the industrial kit
Qualcomm and Qt Group are looking to make it easier to build graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for embedded systems using Qt’s cross-platform development tools, while Qualcomm has also unveiled a micro-power Wi-Fi system for IoT connectivity.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/qualcomm_qt_iot_gui/
Tesla’s New Largest Supercharger Will Have 200 Stalls
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
It will be located in the U.S., but surprisingly not in California.
https://insideevs.com/news/715376/tesla-largest-supercharger-200-stalls/
March is 10th straight month to be hottest on record, scientists say
date: 2024-04-09, from: San Jose Mercury News
Since last June, the globe has broken heat records each month.
NASA Shares Medical Expertise with New Space Station Partners
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
NASA is opening access to space for more people by working with private industry on the development of new commercial space stations for low Earth orbit where the agency’s astronauts could fly in the future. New commercial space stations will be available to people beyond government or professional astronauts with years of specialized training and […]
NASA’s Lola Fatoyinbo Receives Royal Geographical Society Prize
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
Dr. Lola Fatoyinbo, a research scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, received the Esmond B. Martin Royal Geographical Society (RGS) Prize on April 8 in London. The prize, according to the RGS, recognizes “outstanding achievement by an individual in the pursuit and/or application of geographical research, with a particular emphasis on […]
US Cyber Safety Review Board on the 2023 Microsoft Exchange Hack
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Bruce Schneier blog
US Cyber Safety Review Board released a report on the summer 2023 hack of Microsoft Exchange by China. It was a serious attack by the Chinese government that accessed the emails of senior U.S. government officials.
From the executive summary:
The Board finds that this intrusion was preventable and should never have occurred. The Board also concludes that Microsoft’s security culture was inadequate and requires an overhaul, particularly in light of the company’s centrality in the technology ecosystem and the level of trust customers place in the company to protect their data and operations. The Board reaches this conclusion based on:…
Pizza stolen out of delivery person’s hands in Campbell
date: 2024-04-09, from: San Jose Mercury News
Suspect slammed door, closed blinds after robbery.
https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/09/pizza-stolen-out-of-delivery-persons-hands-in-campbell/
Ford unveils new 2024 Mustang Mach-E with more range, quicker acceleration, and faster charging
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
Ford has unveiled its new 2024 Mustang Mach-E lineup, which offers more range, quicker acceleration, and faster charging.
https://electrek.co/2024/04/09/ford-2024-mustang-mach-e-range-quicker-acceleration-faster-charging/
Switching to Meow keybindings in Emacs
date: 2024-04-09, from: Tilde.news
https://esrh.me/posts/2021-12-18-switching-to-meow
Florida beach town becomes the first to launch an all electric bus fleet
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
The city of Hallandale Beach, Florida is in the news this week after becoming the only municipality in the state with a fully electric transit bus fleet.
NYC Chicken Shop Replaces Cashier With Woman in Philippines On Zoom
date: 2024-04-09, from: 404 Media Group
The Zoom meeting info and password is written on a note facing customers.
https://www.404media.co/sansan-chicken-zoom-cashier/
Introducing the First 404 Media Fellow: Jules Roscoe
date: 2024-04-09, from: 404 Media Group
Jules will be covering labor and automation and helping our stories show up on all platforms as our first 404 Media fellow.
https://www.404media.co/introducing-the-first-404-media-fellow-jules-roscoe/
Monterey: Truck pursued by police plunges off wharf with four people inside
date: 2024-04-09, from: San Jose Mercury News
“It was not until the officers could not find the truck that they realized the truck had driven off of the wharf,” the police report said.
@Miguel de Icaza Mastondon feed (date: 2024-04-09, from: Miguel de Icaza Mastondon feed)
On pragmatism
Glad to find this 1966 incarnation of this quote, because I have been using the Rumsfeld version, and it always bothered me a bit:
https://youtube.com/clip/UgkxEJ-y3grdsKZigDeweWo4GsoBJVN-x0yP?si=k9MnYWjRMotDRlf4
https://mastodon.social/@Migueldeicaza/112241447235855567
Grafana Labs updates observability line-up with query-less visualization
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
CTO Tom Wilkie gives an optimistic take on AI without climbing on the bandwagon
Grafana Labs showed off new releases of its eponymous visualization platform, an updated version of Loki, and introduced its distribution of the OpenTelemetry collector, Alloy, at its Amsterdam GrafanaCON this week. We spoke to the company’s CTO, Tom Wilkie, about the updates and where the tech industry darling of the moment – AI – fits into everything.…
Ten years ago, Windows XP received its final update
date: 2024-04-09, from: OS News
Exactly ten years ago, on April 8, 2014, Microsoft released the final security patch for Windows XP. The day marked the end of the road for one of the most iconic Windows versions ever released. ↫ Taras Buria at Neowin I never liked Windows XP. Compared to the operating systems I was using at the time – BeOS, Mandrake Linux 8.x – Windows XP felt kind of like a bad joke I wasn’t in on. It looked ridiculous, didn’t seem to offer anything substantial, and it didn’t take long for major security incidents related to Windows XP to start dominating the news. It wasn’t until several service packs had been released that Windows XP came into its own, but by that point, I had already found a much better alternative for my Windows needs at the time. I’m of course talking about Windows Server 2003, the better Windows than Windows XP. Today though, I do have an odd fondness for Windows XP, as I grow older and XP has become something from my teenage years. The look and feel of Windows XP – the classic theme, not that horrendous Fisher Price nonsense – the sound set, the wallpaper of course – has become iconic, warts and all, and whole generations of people will feel instant feelings as soon as they see Bliss or hear that iconic startup sound. Windows XP with a few service packs now belongs to the small group of Windows releases that I would call the peak of the platform, together with Windows 95 and Windows 7 (and perhaps Server 2003, but that’s more of a personal thing and not a consumer operating system). Everything else has not exactly been great or even aged well, and I doubt Windows 10 and 11 will suddenly get good, either.
https://www.osnews.com/story/139212/ten-years-ago-windows-xp-received-its-final-update/
Audio Hijack 4.4
date: 2024-04-09, from: TidBITS blog
https://tidbits.com/watchlist/audio-hijack-4-4/
Google launches Axion processors, new Arm-based CPUs for the data centre
date: 2024-04-09, from: OS News
Built using the Arm Neoverse™ V2 CPU, Axion processors deliver giant leaps in performance for general-purpose workloads like web and app servers, containerized microservices, open-source databases, in-memory caches, data analytics engines, media processing, CPU-based AI training and inferencing, and more. Axion is underpinned by Titanium, a system of purpose-built custom silicon microcontrollers and tiered scale-out offloads. Titanium offloads take care of platform operations like networking and security, so Axion processors have more capacity and improved performance for customer workloads. Titanium also offloads storage I/O processing to Hyperdisk, our new block storage service that decouples performance from instance size and that can be dynamically provisioned in real time. ↫ Amin Vahdat on the Google blog Fancy new ARM processors from Google, designed explicitly for the data centre. In other words, we’ll never get to play with it unless one makes its way to eBay in a few years.
The Gap Between Tesla’s EV Production And Sales Widened Significantly In Q1 2024
date: 2024-04-09, from: Inside EVs News
After Q1, the cumulative difference is estimated at over 160,000 units.
https://insideevs.com/news/715296/tesla-ev-production-sales-difference-2024q1/
Kove Moto Is Offering to Support Riders Who Want To Race Baja
date: 2024-04-09, from: Ride Apart, Electric Motorcycle News
Kove is raising the stakes with cash incentives for racers and winners.
https://www.rideapart.com/news/715020/kove-usa-baja-pro-moto-adv-support/
A Worthwhile Improvement
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: One Foot Tsunami
https://onefoottsunami.com/2024/04/09/a-worthwhile-improvement/
UK businesses shockingly unaware of how to handle security threats
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Many decide to make no changes after detecting a breach
UK businesses’ response to security breaches has “astounded” experts following the release of the government’s official cybercrime stats for 2024.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/uk_biz_response_to_cybercrime/
SiFive HiFive Premiere P550 high-performance RISC-V dev board coming this summer
date: 2024-04-09, from: Liliputing
SiFive has unveiled an upcoming RISC-V developer board that the company says delivers the “highest performance” of any model currently on the market. The upcoming SiFive HiFive Premiere P550 is powered by an Eswin EIC7700 processor that combines four SiFive P550 CPU cores with a GPU, NPU, and support for PCIe Gen 3, among other things. […]
The post SiFive HiFive Premiere P550 high-performance RISC-V dev board coming this summer appeared first on Liliputing.
60 Years Ago: Gemini 1 Flies a Successful Uncrewed Test Flight
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
On April 8, 1964, Gemini 1 successfully completed the first uncrewed test flight of the Gemini spacecraft and its Titan II booster. The three-orbit mission proved the structural integrity of the spacecraft and the launch vehicle, paving the way for a second uncrewed test flight and ultimately missions with astronauts. The primary goals of Project […]
https://www.nasa.gov/history/60-years-ago-gemini-1-flies-a-successful-uncrewed-test-flight/
March Was Way Too Warm
date: 2024-04-09, from: Heatmap News
Current conditions: Hundreds of flood warnings are in effect for the U.K. • Schools in Cape Town will reopen after the passage of a severe storm • The weather will be “relatively quiet” across most of the U.S. for the next couple of days.
THE TOP FIVE
- March sets another alarming temperature record
March was the 10th consecutive month of record-high temperatures on Earth, Europe’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) reported today. The global average temperature for the month was 57.9 degrees Fahrenheit, which is about 3 degrees warmer than the pre-industrial March average. Over the last 12 months, global temperatures have been 1.58 degrees Celsius higher than pre-industrial averages, above the 1.5 Celsius warming threshold scientists worry could trigger dramatic and irreversible climate damage. Sea surface temperatures also remained alarmingly high, averaging 69.93 degrees Fahrenheit, “the highest monthly value on record.”
C3S
C3S deputy director Samantha Burgess didn’t mince words: “Stopping further warming requires rapid reductions in greenhouse gas emissions,” she said. Woodwell Climate Research Center scientist Jennifer Francis echoed that sentiment: “The trajectory will not change until concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere stop rising, which means we must stop burning fossil fuels, stop deforestation, and grow our food more sustainably as quickly as possible.”
- European court says government inaction on climate change threatens
human rights
The European Court of Human Rights handed down a landmark decision this morning that could ramp up legal pressure on governments to do more to limit global warming. The lawsuit was brought by a group of more than 2,000 older Swiss women who argued Switzerland had violated their human rights by failing to do its part to stop climate change. Older women are more likely to die from extreme heat, and the group said they suffer severely during Swiss heatwaves. The court agreed with them, saying Switzerland hadn’t done enough to meet its emissions reduction targets. The verdict “opens up all 46 members of the Council of Europe to similar cases in national courts that they are likely to lose,” explained The Guardian. “We expect this ruling to influence climate action and climate litigation across Europe and far beyond,” said Joie Chowdhury, an attorney at the Centre for International Environmental Law campaign group. The case was one of three climate suits the court was considering – it threw out the other two.
- Zurich to stop underwriting new fossil fuel projects
Zurich Insurance Group will stop underwriting new oil and gas projects in pursuit of reaching net zero by 2050, Bloomberg reported. The insurer will also pressure its existing corporate clients to curb emissions. “Further exploration and development of fossil fuels isn’t required for the transition,” Sierra Signorelli, chief executive of commercial insurance at Zurich, told Bloomberg. “We think it’s the right time to evolve our position.” The insurer says the policy shift only applies to new oil and gas projects and not existing ones. It will urge all oil and gas customers to set interim emissions targets and put together 2050 net zero plans that are credible, “not just a PowerPoint presentation.”
- Tesla settles wrongful death suit before trial
Tesla reached a settlement with the family of a man who was killed in a 2018 car crash involving the company’s Autopilot feature. The wrongful death lawsuit was set to go to trial this week. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. This isn’t the only lawsuit Tesla faces over its Autopilot driver assistance technology. “Every plaintiff’s lawyer that has one of these cases will be watching,” Matthew Wansley, associate professor at Yeshiva University’s Cardozo School of Law, said before the settlement was announced. “I think Tesla didn’t want all the bad publicity and all the information that would have come out of the trial,” wrote Fred Lambert at Electrek.
- Study: Climate change threatens Antarctica’s meteorites
Antarctica is pockmarked with meteorites: More than 60% of all these small space rocks ever discovered on Earth have been found on the ice sheet, with about 1,000 collected each year for the last decade. Meteorites are valuable scientific resources, offering researchers a wealth of information about our solar system. But a new paper published in the journal Nature Climate Change explains that warmer temperatures brought on by climate change are causing the meteorites to sink into the ice sheet, where they are lost to science.
Scientists
carve out a meteorite submerged in the
ice.Steven
Goderis, Vrije Universiteit Brussel
José
Jorquera (Antarctica.cl), University of Santiago, Chile.
The study estimates the ice surface contains between 300,000 and 850,000 meteorites waiting to be collected, but says 24% of them will be lost by 2050 under current warming conditions, and for every tenth of a degree of increase in global air temperature, an average of nearly 9,000 meteorites will disappear. “The loss of Antarctic meteorites is much like the loss of data that scientists glean from ice cores collected from vanishing glaciers,” said Harry Zekollari, a co-author on the study. “Once they disappear, so do some of the secrets of the universe.”
THE KICKER
Keegan
Barber/NASA via Getty Images
“The eclipse is a really cool celestial event that hopefully can inspire people to see that there’s a lot of beauty in this universe. I hope it can inspire people to protect what we have.” –Michael Greenberg, co-founder of Climate Defiance
https://heatmap.news/march-temperature-heat-record
Embedding the Servo web engine in Qt
date: 2024-04-09, from: OS News
I’ve been talking about Servo, the Rust browser engine project originally started at Mozilla, for a while now, and while the project’s still got a long way to go, it’s definitely a serious contender to become a competitive browser engine in the future. It seems it’s starting to get some traction already, as The KDAB Group is working on bringing Servo to Qt. At KDAB we managed to embed the Servo web engine inside Qt, by using our CXX-Qt library as a bridge between Rust and C++. This means that we can now use Servo as an alternative to Chromium for webviews in Qt applications. ↫ Andrew Hayzen and Magnus Groß They’re already showing off a basic QML application rendering websites using Servo, which is pretty cool. It goes to show that Servo can definitely eventually fulfill the role that Chromium, WebKit, and Gecko fulfill now.
https://www.osnews.com/story/139205/embedding-the-servo-web-engine-in-qt/
From NASA’s First Astronaut Class to Artemis II: The Importance of Military Jet Pilot Experience
date: 2024-04-09, from: NASA breaking news
The Mercury 7 On April 9, 1959, reporters and news media crammed into the ballroom of the Dolley Madison House in Washington—the location of NASA Headquarters at that time—to learn the names of the first American astronauts who came to be known as the Mercury 7. Public Information Director Walter Bonney kicked off the announcement […]
https://www.nasa.gov/history/mercury-7-to-artemis-ii/
Arthur Conan Doyle Agreed to Write ‘The Sign of the Four’ at a Fateful Dinner in 1889
date: 2024-04-09, from: Smithsonian Magazine
The handwritten manuscript he produced is going to auction, where it could become the most expensive item associated with the mystery writer ever sold
Local news outlets are struggling. What are some solutions?
date: 2024-04-09, from: Marketplace Morning Report
“What we’re living through is a historic, tectonic change in how news is produced, consumed and paid for,” says Tim Franklin at Northwestern University’s Local News Initiative. And he’s feeling encouraged. Today, we’ll discuss some of the economic models that could help bolster the sustainability of local news. But first, Tesla recently settled a case challenging how the company marketed its driver-assistance technology. We’ll hear more.
Palantir and Oracle buddy up on cloud infrastructure
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
But do all Foundry workloads move to OCI? It’s up to the customer, spy-tech firm says
Last week Oracle and US spy-tech company Palantir struck a cloud partnership, seemingly delighting investors and the news media. But its success may depend very much on customers’ attitudes to Big Red’s infrastructure offer.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/palantir_and_oracle_buddy_up/
Europe’s green tech concerns
date: 2024-04-09, from: Marketplace Morning Report
From the BBC World Service: After U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned about cheap Chinese green imports, business leaders in Europe are sharing their concerns about Beijing’s impact on the sector. Then, the money-laundering of 27 people connected to the Panama Papers gets underway. And later: Politicians have long utilized social media to reach voters. But whether (semi-embarassing) short dance videos are in store, is utilizing TikTok the right move for politicians?
https://www.marketplace.org/shows/marketplace-morning-report/europes-green-tech-concerns
Content creation holds appeal for laid-off workers seeking flexibility
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
Ichigo Jam: a learning platform based around Raspberry Pi Pico
date: 2024-04-09, from: Raspberry Pi News (.com)
IchigoJam is a novel electronics and BASIC programming education tool built around our $4 Raspberry Pi Pico microcontroller board.
The post Ichigo Jam: a learning platform based around Raspberry Pi Pico appeared first on Raspberry Pi.
https://www.raspberrypi.com/news/ichigo-jam-a-learning-platform-based-around-raspberry-pi-pico/
VMS Software prunes OpenVMS hobbyist program
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Vintage OS editions go the way of the dodo as VSI cranks up exclusivity
Bad news for those who want to play with OpenVMS in non-production use. Older versions are disappearing, and the terms are getting much more restrictive.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/vsi_prunes_hobbyist_prog/
Data Reports – a new article type in PeerJ Life & Environment
date: 2024-04-09, from: PeerJ blog
We are pleased to announce a new submission option for authors via the introduction of “Data Reports” as a new article type in PeerJ Life & Environment. What are Data Reports? These articles describe new curated datasets – or significant extensions of existing datasets – that hold substantial value for the research community. We recognize […]
https://peerj.com/blog/post/115284889086/data-reports-a-new-article-type-in-peerj-life-environment/
Methods Papers – a new article type in PeerJ Life & Environment
date: 2024-04-09, from: PeerJ blog
We are pleased to introduce a new article type in PeerJ Life & Environment aimed at showcasing innovative methods and protocols within the scientific community: Methods Papers. Methods Papers should describe new or significantly improved methods and protocols, or the adaptation of existing methods in new domains. Policies and Procedures for Methods Papers: Need: Authors […]
Biden, Trump hold different views on key domestic policy issues
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
washington — U.S. President Joe Biden, the Democratic Party’s 2024 presidential nominee, and former President Donald Trump, the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee, hold very different views on key foreign and domestic issues. Here’s an overview of where each nominee stands on domestic policy.
Reproductive rights
Biden: The Biden administration has protected access to abortion, including: FDA-approved medication abortion; defended access to emergency medical care; supported the ability to travel for reproductive health care; strengthened access to high-quality, affordable contraception; safeguarded the privacy of patients and health care providers and ensured access to accurate information and legal resources, according to a March 7, 2024 White House fact sheet.
On March 26, 2024, Biden said, “If America sends me a Congress that are Democrats, I promise you, Kamala and I will restore Roe vs. Wade is the law of the land again.” He also warned on March 8, 2024, that “states are passing bans criminalizing doctors, forcing rape and incest victims to leave their state to get care. And now MAGA Republicans and Donald Trump want to pass a national ban on the right to choose, period. Well. Take it seriously, folks, because that’s what they’re heading for. Hear me loud and clear. This will not happen on my watch.”
Trump: Trump’s three Supreme Court nominees during his presidency shifted the balance of the court, resulting in an overturning of Roe vs. Wade, sending the decision to legalize abortion back to the states.
Trump announced on April 8, 2024, that he believed abortion legislation should be left up to each state. Previously, he suggested a nationwide ban on abortion after 15 weeks, saying, “Fifteen weeks seems to be a number that people are agreeing at.”
Economy
Biden: In a December 5, 2023, speech in Boston, Biden said the economy had created 14 million new jobs — more jobs than any president has created in a four-year term; record economic growth — over 5% just the last quarter; unemployment under 4% for 20 months in a row, and the lowest inflation rate of any of the world’s major economies. Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which authorized $550 billion in new spending.
Trump: According to his campaign website, during his presidency, “President Donald J. Trump passed record-setting tax relief for the middle class, doubled the child tax credit, and slashed more job-killing regulations than any administration had ever done before. Real wages quickly increased as a result, and median household income reached the highest level in the history of our country, while poverty reached a record low.”
Immigration/border security
Biden: President Biden supported the bipartisan Senate Border Security Act that would have provided billions of dollars in additional funding for security and enabled him to shut down the U.S.-Mexico border if daily and weekly border encounters surpassed certain metrics. Former President Trump pressured Republican lawmakers to reject the border security deal, resulting in its failure to pass in the U.S. Congress. On March 9, 2024, Biden said, “On my first day in office as president, I introduced a comprehensive, comprehensive plan to fix our immigration system, secure our border, provide a pathway for citizenship for dreamers and their families, farmworkers, essential workers who helped us through the pandemic and are part of the fabric of our community.”
Trump: On the campaign trail in 2024, Trump has pledged to conduct the largest deportation in U.S. history, shift “massive portions of federal law enforcement to immigration enforcement” and terminate the visas of Hamas sympathizers on college campuses.
On his campaign website, Trump said that in cooperative states, he will deputize the National Guard and local law enforcement to assist with rapidly removing illegal alien gang members and criminals. He also pledged to deliver a merit-based immigration system that protects American labor and promotes American values.
During his presidency, Trump issued an executive order suspending entry into the United States for everyone from Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen for 90 days and indefinitely for Syrian refugees. He began construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Criminal justice
Biden: In multiple executive orders, the president has directed the Justice Department not to renew contracts with privately operated criminal detention facilities; directed billions of dollars in public funds to community safety initiatives; and expanded community grants to keep guns off the streets.
During his State of the Union speech on March 7, 2024, Biden said, “I’m demanding a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Pass universal background checks. None of this. None of this. I taught the Second Amendment for 12 years. None of this violates the Second Amendment or vilifies responsible gun owners.”
Trump: During his presidency, Trump launched Operation Legend to combat a surge of violent crime in cities, resulting in more than 5,500 arrests and signed the Safe Policing for Safe Communities executive order to incentivize local police department reforms in line with law and order.
The former president made hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of surplus military equipment available to local law enforcement, signed an executive order to help prevent violence against law enforcement officers and signed the bipartisan First Step Act into law, the first landmark criminal justice reform legislation ever passed to reduce recidivism and help former inmates successfully rejoin society.
On the campaign trail this year, Trump has made the case he will combat crimes committed by undocumented immigrants.
“I do great with the suburban housewives because they want to remain safe. But they [undocumented immigrants] loot the jewelry, they take their purses, electronics, watches, all of their cash. And the people come back and they say, what happened? If you don’t want illegal alien criminals crawling through your windows and ransacking your drawers, then you must vote for the fact that we have to throw Crooked Joe Biden out as fast as possible,” he said on April 2, 2024.
Climate/energy production
Biden: The Democratic president rejoined the Paris climate agreement and signed the Inflation Reduction Act, investing hundreds of billions of dollars in clean energy, electric vehicles and environmental justice. His administration also met goals of cutting emissions by at least 50% by 2030 and was among the leaders who launched the Global Methane Pledge, tackling super polluters.
Trump: During his presidency, Trump pulled out of the Paris climate agreement and claimed that Earth’s temperatures “will start getting cooler.” Trump appointees dismantled fossil fuel agreements, kept coal-burning power plants open and launched an anti-trust probe of automakers who agreed to clean air standards.
“President Trump will unleash the production of domestic energy resources, reduce the soaring price of gasoline, diesel and natural gas, promote energy security for our friends around the world, eliminate the socialist Green New Deal and ensure the United States is never again at the mercy of a foreign supplier of energy,” according to his campaign website.
https://www.voanews.com/a/biden-trump-on-key-domestic-policy-issues-/7561822.html
Irish power crunch could be prompting AWS to ration compute resources
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Users report being pointed to other EU regions if they need more grunt
Exclusive Datacenter power issues in Ireland may be coming to a head amid reports from customers that Amazon is restricting resources users can spin up in that nation, even directing them to other AWS regions across Europe instead.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/aws_resource_restrictions/
@Dave Winer’s linkblog (date: 2024-04-09, from: Dave Winer’s linkblog)
Tesla made “full self-driving” free for a month. Here’s one owner’s review. Not too far from my own, which I probably should write up.
https://werd.io/2024/i-tried-tesla-fsd
US envoy to UN to visit Korean border, North Korean defectors
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
SEOUL, South Korea — The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations will travel to the heavily armed Korean border and meet North Korean defectors in South Korea, her office said on Monday, amid faltering U.N. efforts to ensure sanctions enforcement against the North.
Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield’s trip, set for April 14-20, came after Russia rejected the annual renewal of the multinational panel of experts, which has over the past 15 years worked on the implementation of U.N. sanctions aimed at curbing North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs.
Washington, Seoul and Tokyo criticized Moscow’s veto and China’s abstention, which experts said would undermine the sanctions enforcement, with a South Korean envoy likening it to “destroying a CCTV to avoid being caught red-handed.”
Thomas-Greenfield’s trip, which will also include a stop in Japan, was meant to advance bilateral and trilateral cooperation on the sanctions and beyond, U.S. mission to the U.N. spokesperson Nate Evans said.
Both South Korea and Japan are currently members of the Security Council.
“In both countries, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield will discuss next steps to ensure a continuation of independent and accurate reporting of the DPRK’s ongoing weapons proliferation and sanctions evasion activities,” Evans said in a statement, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
In South Korea, Thomas-Greenfield will travel to the heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone between the two Koreas, meet young North Korean defectors as well as students at Ewha Womans University, Evans said.
In Japan, she will also meet family members of Japanese citizens who were abducted in the early 2000s by North Korea, and visit Nagasaki, which was hit by U.S. nuclear bombing in 1945.
https://www.voanews.com/a/us-envoy-to-un-to-visit-korean-border-north-korean-defectors/7562396.html
Localising AI education: Adapting Experience AI for global impact
date: 2024-04-09, from: Raspberry Pi (.org)
It’s been almost a year since we launched our first set of Experience AI resources in the UK, and we’re now working with partner organisations to bring AI literacy to teachers and students all over the world. Developed by the Raspberry Pi Foundation and Google DeepMind, Experience AI provides everything that teachers need to confidently…
The post Localising AI education: Adapting Experience AI for global impact appeared first on Raspberry Pi Foundation.
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/localising-ai-education-adapting-experience-ai-resources/
Arm flexes silicon muscles to push generative AI at the edge
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Ethos-U85 microNPU boasts 4x performance boost over previous gen
Arm is aiming to boost AI performance at the edge with its latest embedded neural processing unit (NPU) and a Reference Design Platform for it to slot into, and said it expects to see devices based on it running generative AI models next year.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/arm_ethos_u85/
More evidence that RFK Junior is working for Trump (as if you needed it)
date: 2024-04-09, from: Robert Reich on Substack
Here it is
https://robertreich.substack.com/p/more-evidence-that-rfk-junior-is
How we got our academic awards back
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
In this episode of “The Soapbox”, host Jennifer Baek paints a picture of the discontinuation and reinstatement of the Academic Achievement Award and Exceptional Funding at USC, alongside opinion staff writers Sherie Agcaoili, Edhita Singhal and Luisa Luo, whose co-written essay was published just days before the University reversed its decision on the awards.
The post How we got our academic awards back appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/how-we-got-our-academic-awards-back/
Report: US must enhance critical minerals strategy in Africa
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
STATE DEPARTMENT — The United States must refine its Africa policy with a focus on critical minerals, including boosting its diplomatic and commercial presence in African mining hubs, says a report from the Washington-based United States Institute of Peace, or USIP.
The group says the changes are needed to safeguard against export controls and market manipulation by geopolitical competitors.
The United States heavily relies on imports for many critical minerals for use in electric vehicle batteries and other applications such as cobalt, graphite and manganese.
“Especially concerning is that the United States is at or near 100% reliant on ‘foreign entities of concern’ — mainly the People’s Republic of China — for key critical minerals,” says the USIP report.
Despite the efforts of the Biden administration and Congress to support U.S. firms in African markets, progress remains measured, with no sign that China and Gulf State competitors are retreating. The USIP report recommends the U.S. government invests in “commercial diplomacy” in Africa.
For example, Washington should prioritize to fully realize the potential benefits of a memorandum of understanding signed with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zambia, following the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in December 2022 to jointly develop a supply chain for electric vehicle batteries.
The DRC produces more than 70% of the world’s cobalt, while Zambia is the world’s sixth-largest copper producer and the second-largest cobalt producer in Africa.
The USIP report also recommends that the U.S. increase the physical presence of diplomatic and commercial officers in mining centers. Given the proximity of the Congolese city of Lubumbashi to critical minerals, and the high priority placed on the country’s Lobito Corridor, USIP suggests reopening a U.S. consulate in Lubumbashi, provided security levels are acceptable.
In the mid-1990s, the United States closed its consulate in Lubumbashi following the end of the Cold War and the redirection of interests and resources. Lubumbashi is the capital of the mineral-rich Katanga Province and the second-largest city in the DRC.
Gécamines, the Congolese state mining company, is headquartered in the city, as are other mining companies.
Other policy recommendations include prioritizing and leveraging existing U.S. Agency for International Development programs to assist Africans with rule-of-law and fiscal transparency efforts, expanding membership of the Minerals Security Partnership to include African partners, as well as assisting African nations in building technical capacity in the mining sector.
Launched in June 2022, the Minerals Security Partnership, or MSP, is a collaboration of 14 countries and the European Union to catalyze public and private investment in responsible critical minerals supply chains globally.
U.S. officials say MSP members represent more than 50% of global gross domestic product and currently run 23 projects that involve the extraction and processing of cobalt, copper, gallium, germanium, graphite, lithium, manganese, nickel and rare earth elements.
“We need to scale up our critical mineral supply chains to deploy clean technologies more quickly, more effectively,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told an MSP forum in Leuven, Belgium, earlier this month. “The demand is rising. By 2040, demand for lithium is expected to grow by more than 40%. Graphite, cobalt, nickel demand is set to grow 20 to 25 times.”
https://www.voanews.com/a/report-us-must-enhance-critical-minerals-strategy-in-africa/7562375.html
Solar eclipse darkened skies, dampened internet traffic
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Byteflow dropped by around half under some of the path of totality
Cloudflare has measured the state of the internet during the solar eclipse that was visible on Monday across a swathe of North America, and found a measurable decrease in traffic.…
Classifieds – April 9, 2024
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
The Daily Trojan features Classified advertising in each day’s edition. Here you can read, search, and even print out each day’s edition of the Classifieds.
The post Classifieds – April 9, 2024 appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/classifieds-april-9-2024/
Today in SCV History (April 9)
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
1937 – Pioneer aviator E.B. Christopher and passenger killed in crash of light plane on Ridge Route near Gorman. [story
https://scvnews.com/today-in-scv-history-april-9/
Missed Connections admin breaks up with USC
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
As current account owner Will Domke graduates this May, he passes the torch.
The post Missed Connections admin breaks up with USC appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/missed-connections-admin-breaks-up-with-usc/
From Death Valley to Leavey Library, students explore Cotopaxi’s Questival race
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
SC Outfitters partnered with Cotopaxi’s 24-hour Questival race to complete challenging tasks across California and give back to the community.
The post From Death Valley to Leavey Library, students explore Cotopaxi’s Questival race appeared first on Daily Trojan.
Muslim Student Union hosts free iftar dinners for fasting students
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
The organization has fed over a hundred people four times a week for Ramadan.
The post Muslim Student Union hosts free iftar dinners for fasting students appeared first on Daily Trojan.
Eric Musselman is the right man for the job
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
The newly hired head coach will lead men’s basketball into the Big Ten.
The post Eric Musselman is the right man for the job appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/eric-musselman-is-the-right-man-for-the-job/
It feels like my life hinges on my summer internship
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
International students often obsess over a summer internship in the US, forgetting the comfort of home.
The post It feels like my life hinges on my summer internship appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/it-feels-like-my-life-hinges-on-my-summer-internship/
Five Kristen Stewart films to celebrate the star’s birthday
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
Impress your “Love Lies Bleeding” date with your new KStew knowledge.
The post Five Kristen Stewart films to celebrate the star’s birthday appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/five-kristen-stewart-films-to-celebrate-the-stars-birthday/
Space excitement eclipses campus
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
The USC community gathered Monday morning to view the solar eclipse with special glasses and professional telescopes.
The post Space excitement eclipses campus appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/space-excitement-eclipses-campus/
Men’s volleyball’s unforgettable Saturday night
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
The Trojans’ upset over BYU was an instant classic and USC’s biggest win this year.
The post Men’s volleyball’s unforgettable Saturday night appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/mens-volleyballs-unforgettable-saturday-night/
From SNL dreams to USC scenes: The Suspenders’ ‘Wild Wild Sketch’
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
Look inside the hilarious world of the sketch comedy troupe’s most recent show.
The post From SNL dreams to USC scenes: The Suspenders’ ‘Wild Wild Sketch’ appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/from-snl-dreams-to-usc-scenes/
Extend operating hours during finals
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Daily Trojan (USC Student Paper)
Late night studying in the week before exams needs adequate support from USC.
The post Extend operating hours during finals appeared first on Daily Trojan.
https://dailytrojan.com/2024/04/09/extend-operating-hours-during-finals/
From overcapacity to TikTok, issues covered during Janet Yellen’s trip to China
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
Beijing — U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and her team are leaving China and returning to Washington after trying to tackle the major questions of the day between the countries. Here’s a look at what she tried to accomplish, what was achieved, and where things stand for the world’s two largest economies:
Unfair trade practices
Yellen said she wanted to go into the U.S.-China talks to address a major Biden administration complaint that Beijing’s economic model and trade practices put American companies and workers at an unfair competitive disadvantage by producing highly subsidized solar products, electric vehicles and lithium-ion batteries at a loss, dominating the global market.
Chinese government subsidies and other policy support have encouraged solar panel and EV makers in China to invest in factories, building far more production capacity than the domestic market can absorb. She calls this overcapacity.
Throughout the week of meetings, she talked about the risks that come from one nation maintaining nearly all production capacity in these industries, the threat it poses to other nations’ industries and how a massive rapid increase in exports from one country can have big impacts on the global economy.
Ultimately, the two sides agreed to hold “intensive exchanges” on more balanced economic growth, according to a U.S. statement issued after Yellen and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng held extended meetings over two days in the southern city of Guangzhou. It was not immediately clear when and where the talks would take place.
“It’s not going to be solved in an afternoon or a month, but I think they have heard that this is an important issue to us,” she said.
Money laundering, related crimes
After several rounds of meetings, the U.S. Treasury and the Chinese central bank agreed to work together to stop money laundering in their respective financial systems.
Nearly all the precursor chemicals that are needed to make the deadly substance fentanyl are coming from China into the U.S. The U.S. says exchanging information on money laundering related to fentanyl trafficking may help disrupt the flow of the precursor chemicals into Mexico and the U.S.
“Treasury is committed to using all of our tools, including international cooperation, to counter this threat,” Yellen said in a speech announcing the formation of the group.
The new cooperative between the U.S. and China will be part of the two nations’ economic working groups that were launched last September, and the first exchange will be held in the coming weeks.
TikTok
Efforts in the U.S. to ban social media app TikTok, owned by Chinese parent company ByteDance, were raised initially by the Chinese during U.S-China talks, a senior Treasury official told The Associated Press. The firm has in the past promoted a data security restructuring plan called “Project Texas” that it says sufficiently guards against national security concerns.
However, U.S. lawmakers have moved forward with efforts to either ban the app or force the Chinese firm to divest its interest in the company, which the White House has supported. In China this week, it was evident that there was little movement on the issue.
Yellen said at a news conference Monday that she supported the administration’s efforts to address national security issues that relate to sensitive personal data. “This is a legitimate concern,” she said.
“Many U.S. social apps are not allowed to operate in China,” Yellen said. “We would like to find a way forward.”
Financial stability
On the second day of Yellen’s trip to China, the U.S. and China announced an agreement to work closely on issues related to financial stability, in that U.S. and Chinese financial regulators agreed to hold a series of exercises simulating a failure of a large bank in either of the two countries.
The aim is to determine how to coordinate if a bank failure occurs, with the intent of preventing catastrophic stress on the global financial system.
Yellen said several exercises have already happened.
“I’m pleased that we will hold upcoming exchanges on operational resilience in the financial sector and on financial stability implications from the insurance sector’s exposure to climate risks.
“Just like military leaders need a hotline in a crisis,” Yellen said “American and Chinese financial regulators must be able to communicate to prevent financial stresses from turning into crises with tremendous ramifications for our citizens and the international community.”
What she ate
Yellen is something of a foodie celebrity in China ever since she ate mushrooms that can have psychedelic effects in Beijing last July. This trip was no different.
High-ranking Chinese officials brought up her celebrity ahead of important meetings — Premier Li Qiang noted in his opening remarks that Yellen’s visit has “indeed drawn a lot of attention in society” with media covering her trip and her dining habits. And social media was abuzz, following her latest movements around Guangzhou and Beijing.
This time in Beijing, Yellen ate at Lao Chuan Ban, a popular Sichuan restaurant. She also had lunch with Beijing Mayor Yin Yong at the Beijing International Hotel. On Monday evening, her last night in China, Yellen visited Jing-A Brewing Co. in Beijing — co-founded by an American — where she ordered a Flying Fist IPA, a beer made with American hops.
Cameron to try to rally US support for Ukraine aid
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
https://www.voanews.com/a/cameron-to-try-to-rally-us-support-for-ukraine-aid/7562364.html
Connecticut wins second consecutive NCAA Men’s Division One Basketball Championship
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
AI could crash democracy and cause wars, warns Japan’s NTT
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Calls for ecosystem in which AIs keep other AIs in check, and lots more regulation
Japanese telecom giant NTT issued an apocalyptic warning about the impending dangers of AI on Monday.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/ntt_ai_apocalypse/
April 8, 2024
date: 2024-04-09, from: Heather Cox Richardson blog
On Sunday, Representative Michael R. Turner (R-OH), chair of the House Intelligence Committee, said it is “absolutely true” that Republican members of Congress are parroting Russian propaganda. “We see directly coming from Russia attempts to mask communications that are anti-Ukraine and pro-Russia messages, some of which we even hear being uttered on the House floor,” he said on CNN’s
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/april-8-2024
Swimming success at 3rd Western State Conference
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Round Up (Peirce College Student Paper)
Give them an inch and they’ll swim a mile. Take away their pool and they’ll still swim a mile. The Pierce College men’s and women’s
The post Swimming success at 3rd Western State Conference appeared first on .
https://theroundupnews.com/2024/04/08/swim/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=swim
India and EU finally advance HPC collaboration project hatched in 2022
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Seek ideas for thorny problems related to both HPC and real-world problems
India has called for proposals under the Cooperation on High Performance Computing pact it signed with the European Union in 2022.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/india_eu_hpc_collaboration/
SiFive is back with another 64-bit RISC-V dev board – hopefully
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Ditching Intel for a system-on-chip out of Beijing
SiFive has promised the world another HiFive RISC-V development system featuring a 64-bit out-of-order processor for engineers and other curious techies to try out.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/sifive_riscv_hifive/
April 10: Hart District Board to Review Superintendent Search Firm Proposals
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
A special meeting of the William S. Hart Union High School District’s Governing Board will be held 4 p.m. Wednesday, April
https://scvnews.com/april-10-hart-district-board-to-review-superintendent-search-firm-proposals/
How Republicans and Democrats got their animal symbols
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
In the United States, the two major political parties have been illustrated by a donkey, symbolizing the Democratic Party, or an elephant, symbolizing the Republican Party. The images are used on campaign-related materials. But why were these two beasts chosen?
https://www.voanews.com/a/how-republicans-and-democrats-got-their-animal-symbols/7562322.html
Daily EV Recap: Hyundai goes all in on electric
date: 2024-04-09, from: Electrek Feed
Listen to a recap of the top stories of the day from Electrek. Quick Charge is now available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn and…
https://electrek.co/2024/04/08/daily-ev-recap-hyundai-goes-all-in-on-electric/
Japan may join UK/US/Australia defense-oriented AI and quantum alliance
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
But not the nuclear subs bit
The AUKUS Alliance – a team-up between Australia, the US and the UK – has revealed it may invite Japan to join its efforts to develop artificial intelligence and quantum computing tech to be used for mutual defense.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/japan_aukus_pillar_2_tech/
Morphotrophic
date: 2024-04-09, from: Greg Egan’s feed
My new novel, MORPHOTROPHIC, is now available.
https://www.gregegan.net/MORPHOTROPHIC/00/MorphotrophicExcerpt.html
[Sponsor] Pok Pok
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Daring Fireball
https://pokpok.sng.link/Dahqz/tfl2/zk3w
Google Launches Upgraded Find My Device Network for Android
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Daring Fireball
https://blog.google/products/android/android-find-my-device/
The Continued Importance of REALTORS®: Navigating Post-NAR Settlement Realties
date: 2024-04-09, from: Santa Barbara Indenpent News
By Michele Allyn2024 PresidentSanta Barbara Association of Realtors With the news of the recent announcement of a proposed settlement between
The post The Continued Importance of REALTORS®: Navigating Post-NAR Settlement Realties appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.
With $6.6B to Arizona hub, Biden touts big steps in US chipmaking
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
Washington; Flagstaff, Arizona — President Joe Biden on Monday announced a $6.6 billion grant to Taiwan’s top chip manufacturer to produce semiconductors in the southwestern U.S. state of Arizona, which includes a third facility that will bring the foreign tech giant’s investment in the state to $65 billion.
Biden said the move aims to perk up a decades-old slump in American chip manufacturing. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), which is based in the Chinese-claimed island, claims more than half of the global market share in chip manufacturing.
The new facility, Biden said, will put the U.S. on track to produce 20% of the world’s leading-edge semiconductors by 2030.
“I was determined to turn that around, and thanks to my CHIPS and Science Act — a key part of my Investing in America agenda — semiconductor manufacturing and jobs are making a comeback,” Biden said in a statement.
U.S. production of this American-born technology has fallen steeply in recent decades, said Andy Wang, dean of engineering at Northern Arizona University.
“As a nation, we used to produce 40% of microchips for the whole world,” he told VOA. “Now, we produce less than 10%.”
A single semiconductor transistor is smaller than a grain of sand. But billions of them, packed neatly together, can connect the world through a mobile phone, control sophisticated weapons of war and satellites that orbit the Earth, and someday may even drive a car.
The immense value of these tiny chips has fueled fierce competition between the U.S. and China.
The U.S. Department of Commerce has taken several steps to hamper China’s efforts to build its own chip industry. Those include export controls and new rules to prevent “foreign countries of concern” — which it said includes China, Iran, North Korea and Russia — from benefiting from funding from the CHIPS and Science Act.
While analysts are divided over whether Taiwan’s dominance of this critical industry makes it more or less vulnerable to Chinese aggression, they agree it confers the island significant global status.
“It is debatable what, if any, role Taiwan’s semiconductor manufacturing prowess plays in deterrence,” said David Sacks, an analyst who focuses on U.S.-China relations at the Council on Foreign Relations. “What is not debatable is how devastating an attack on Taiwan would be for the global economy.”
Biden did not mention U.S. adversaries in his statement, but he noted the impact of Monday’s announcement, saying it “represent(s) a broader story for semiconductor manufacturing that’s made in America and with the strong support of America’s leading technology firms to build the products we rely on every day.”
VOA met with engineers in the new technological hub state, who said the legislation addresses a key weakness in American chip manufacturing.
“We’ve just gotten in the cycle of the last 15 to 20 years, where innovation has slowed down,” said Todd Achilles, who teaches innovation, strategy and policy analysis at the University of California-Berkeley. “It’s all about financial results, investor payouts and stock buybacks. And we’ve lost that innovation muscle. And the CHIPS Act — pulling that together with the CHIPS Act — is the perfect opportunity to restore that.”
The White House says this new investment could create 25,000 construction and manufacturing jobs. Academics say they’re churning out workers at a rapid pace, but that still, America lacks talent.
“Our engineering college is the largest in the country, with over 33,000 enrolled students, and still we’re hearing from companies across the semiconductor industry that they’re not able to get the talent they need in time,” Zachary Holman, vice dean for research and innovation at Arizona State University, told VOA.
And as the American industry stretches to keep pace, it races a technical trend known as t: that the number of transistors in a computer chip doubles about every two years. As a result, cutting-edge chips get ever smaller as they grow in computing power.
TSMC in 2022 broke ground on a facility that makes the smallest chip currently available, coming in at 3 nanometers — that’s just wider than a strand of DNA.
Reporter Levi Stallings contributed to this report from Flagstaff, Arizona.
US legislators propose American Privacy Rights Act - and it looks quite good
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
After two decades of calls for national protections, something may actually happen
Americans may soon live under a federal privacy law – a mere two decades after the US Federal Trade Commission urged Congress to regulate online data collection.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/us_federal_privacy_law_apra/
Woman arrested on suspicion of child cruelty
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Signal
A woman was arrested by Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies Saturday on suspicion of child cruelty after allegedly driving while under the influence, according to station officials. Deputies were called to the 15000 block of Leigh Court on Saturday at approximately 3 a.m. regarding a disturbance call, according to Deputy Kabrina Borbon, spokeswoman for […]
The post Woman arrested on suspicion of child cruelty appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/woman-arrested-on-suspicion-of-child-cruelty/
With $6.6B to Arizona hub, Biden touts big steps in US chipmaking
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
President Joe Biden on Monday announced a $6.6 billion grant to Taiwan’s top chip manufacturer for semiconductor manufacturing in Arizona, which includes a third facility that will bring the tech giant’s investment in the state to $65 billion. VOA’s White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from Washington, with reporter Levi Stallings in Flagstaff, Arizona.
Little School of Music students come back with big achievements
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Signal
It may be called the Little School of Music, but you could say its accomplishments, such as receiving gold at the WorldStrides Heritage Festival in Anaheim, prove otherwise. Bands “Flashback” and “Crazy Crew” received the highest ranking in the competition, which was comprised of groups from seven states, including Hawaii, Florida and Alaska, and two […]
The post Little School of Music students come back with big achievements appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/little-school-of-music-students-come-back-with-big-achievements/
Massive crowds watch total solar eclipse over US
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
Millions of people in the United States from Texas to Maine looked to the sky to witness a rare total solar eclipse. VOA’s Kane Farabaugh attended a viewing event hosted by NASA and Purdue University at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and has more.
https://www.voanews.com/a/massive-crowds-watch-total-solar-eclipse-over-us/7562281.html
San Francisco’s light rail to upgrade from floppy disks
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
What is it with Fog City and ancient transport tech?
Those taking public transport in the tech hub of San Francisco may be reassured to know that their rides will soon no longer be dependent on floppy disks.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/san_francisco_muni_floppy_disks/
Man gets 90 days for brandishing after parking lot argument
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Signal
A Canyon Country emergency medical technician, who was charged with assault after an argument over a parking space escalated when a gun was drawn, was sentenced last month, according to the L.A. County District Attorney’s Office. On March 25, Darwin Montoya, 29, was ordered to serve 90 days in county jail; complete anger-management classes; to […]
The post Man gets 90 days for brandishing after parking lot argument appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/man-gets-90-days-for-brandishing-after-parking-lot-argument/
CHP arrests man after pursuit
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Signal
A Pasadena man was arrested Friday after leading California Highway Patrol officers on a brief pursuit through Santa Clarita, according to a spokesman for the agency. The suspect was driving north on The Old Road near McBean Parkway around 5:30 p.m. when he accelerated from a traffic light at a high rate of speed, […]
The post CHP arrests man after pursuit appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/chp-arrests-man-after-pursuit/
Eagle Scout candidate raises funds for elementary school
date: 2024-04-09, from: The Signal
For Boy Scouts of America Troop 303 member Joseph Wickham-Vilaubi, his Eagle Scout project is not only about getting promoted — it’s also about helping others like him feel less alone. “When I was growing up at Mint Canyon [Elementary School], I was never good at making friends,” he said, “and so I wanted to […]
The post Eagle Scout candidate raises funds for elementary school appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.
https://signalscv.com/2024/04/eagle-scout-candidate-raises-funds-for-elementary-school/
Latino voters, coveted by both parties, are targets of election misinformation
date: 2024-04-09, from: VOA News USA
phoenix — As ranchera music filled the Phoenix recording studio at Radio Campesina, a station personality spoke in Spanish into the microphone.
“Friends of Campesina, in these elections, truth and unity are more important than ever,” said morning show host Tony Arias. “Don’t let yourself be trapped by disinformation.”
The audio was recorded as a promo for Radio Campesina’s new campaign aiming to empower Latino voters ahead of the 2024 elections. That effort includes discussing election-related misinformation narratives and fact-checking conspiracy theories on air.
“We are at the front lines of fighting misinformation in our communities,” said Maria Barquin, program director of Chavez Radio Group, the nonprofit that runs Radio Campesina, a network of Spanish-language stations in Arizona, California and Nevada.
“There’s a lot at stake in 2024 for our communities. And so, we need to amp up these efforts now more than ever.”
Latinos have grown at the second-fastest rate, behind Asian Americans, of any major racial or ethnic group in the U.S. since the last presidential election, according to a Pew Research Center analysis, and are projected to account for 14.7%, or 36.2 million, of all eligible voters in November, a new high. They are a growing share of the electorate in several presidential and congressional battleground states, including Arizona, California and Nevada, and are being heavily courted by Republicans and Democrats.
Democratic President Joe Biden has credited Latino voters as a key reason he defeated Republican Donald Trump in 2020 and is urging them to help him do it again in November. Given the high stakes of a presidential election year, experts expect a surge of misinformation, especially through audio and video, targeting Spanish-speaking voters.
In addition to radio, much of the news and information Latinos consume is audio-based through podcasts or social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp and YouTube. Content moderation efforts in Spanish are limited on these platforms, which are seeing a rising number of right-wing influencers peddling election falsehoods and QAnon conspiracy theories.
The types of misinformation overlap with falsehoods found in other conservative media and many corners of the internet — conspiracy theories about mail voting, dead people casting ballots, rigged voting machines and threats at polling sites.
Other narratives are more closely tailored to Latino communities, including false information about immigration, inflation and abortion rights, often exploiting the traumas and fears of specific communities. For example, Spanish speakers who have come from countries with recent histories of authoritarianism, socialism, high inflation and election fraud may be more vulnerable to misinformation about those topics.
Misinformation on the airwaves also is particularly difficult to track and combat compared with more traditional, text-based misinformation, said Daiquiri Ryan Mercado, strategic legal adviser and policy counsel for the National Hispanic Media Coalition, which runs the Spanish Language Disinformation Coalition. While misinformation researchers can more easily code programs to categorize and track text-based misinformation, audio often requires manual listening. Radio stations that air only in certain areas at certain times also can be difficult to track.
“When we have such limited representation, Spanish speakers feel like they can connect to these people, and they become trusted messengers,” Mercado said. “But some people may take advantage of that trust.”
Mercado and others said that’s why trusted messengers, such as Radio Campesina, are so important. The station was founded by Mexican American labor and civil rights leader Cesar Chavez and has built a loyal listening base over decades. At any given moment, as many as 750,000 people are listening to the Chavez Radio Network on the air and online, Barquin said.
“They will come and listen to us because of the music, but our main focus is to empower and educate through information,” she said. “The music is just a tactic to bring them in.”
Radio Campesina’s on-air talent and musical guests often discuss misinformation on air, answering listeners’ questions about voting, teaching them about spotting misinformation and doing tutorials on election processes, such as how to submit mail-in ballots. The station also has hosted rodeos and music events to register new voters and talk about misinformation.
They allow listeners to call or text questions on WhatsApp, a social media platform especially popular with immigrant communities but where much of the misinformation they see festers. In March, the station partnered with Mi Familia Vota, a Latino advocacy group, for an on-air show and voter phone bank event to answer voter questions.
“We know that there are many people who are unmotivated because sometimes we come from countries where, when it comes to elections, we don’t trust the vote,” said Carolina Rodriguez-Greer, Arizona director of Mi Familia Vota, before she shared information on the show about how voters can track their ballots.
The organization began working with Spanish media outlets to dispel misinformation after seeing candidates such as former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake spread election lies in 2022, Rodriguez-Greer said. Lake is now running for the U.S. Senate with Trump’s endorsement.
“One way to combat this misinformation is to fill the airways with good information,” said Angelica Razo, national deputy director of campaigns and programs for Mi Familia Vota.
A variety of other community and media groups also are prioritizing the seemingly never-ending fight against misinformation.
Maritza Felix often fact-checked misinformation for her mother, whom she calls the “Queen of WhatsApp.” This led to Felix doing the same for family and friends in a WhatsApp group that grew into the Spanish news nonprofit Conecta Arizona.
It now runs a radio show and newsletter that debunks false claims about election processes, health, immigration and border politics. Conecta Arizona also combats misinformation about the upcoming Mexican presidential election that Felix said has been seeping over the border.
The Spanish-language fact-checking group Factchequeado is building partnerships with dozens of media outlets across the country to provide training and free Spanish fact-checking content.
“Disinformation is at the same time a global phenomenon and a hyperlocal phenomenon,” said Factchequeado co-founder Laura Zommer. “So, we have to address it with local and national groups uniting together.”
Reform of USA’s Section 702 spying rule may make it to a vote this week
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: The Register (UK I.T. News)
Tool that lets spooks observe Americans appears to have been renewed for another year
Everyone’s favorite warrantless surveillance tool, FISA Section 702, returns to the US House of Representatives this week and is expected to go to a full House vote on Thursday.…
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/04/09/fisa_section_702_deadline/
TMU Announces Featured Speaker for 2024 Commencement
date: 2024-04-09, from: SCV New (TV Station)
Greg Gifford, Ph.D., will be the featured speaker at this year’s commencement ceremony at The Master’s University
https://scvnews.com/tmu-announces-featured-speaker-for-2024-commencement/
Systems: What warms the heart?
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Anil Dash blog
https://anildash.com/2024/04/09/systems-heartwarming-stories/
Go Developer Survey 2024 H1 Results
date: 2024-04-09, updated: 2024-04-09, from: Go language blog
What we learned from our 2024 H1 developer survey
https://go.dev/blog/survey2024-h1-results
Announcing pl/dotnet, version 0.99 (beta)
date: 2024-04-09, from: PostgreSQL News
Announcing pl/dotnet, version 0.99 (beta)
pl/dotnet adds full support for C# and F# to PostgreSQL. 0.99 is our public beta release; we wish to share its amazingness with the world.
- We support all PL operations: functions, procedures, DO, SPI, triggers, records, SRF, OUT/INOUT, table functions, etc
- We natively support 40 out of 46 standard user types, the most of any external PL
- Fully NPGSQL-compatible, and SPI is exposed through the NPGSQL API for maximum compatibility
- In our benchmarks, C# and F# are the fastest Procedural Languages in PostrgreSQL
- All features are fully tested for both C# and F#, with 1013 unit tests
- 100% free software under the PostgreSQL license
This is a beta release; we invite usage and welcome feedback.
Accessing it:
- Installation instructions: dpkg, docker
- Our GitHub
- Our discussion forum
- Our WebPage
- Our FAQ
- Our Wiki
- Our whitepaper
More details below.
Usage example
pl/dotnet gives you the full power of C# and F# in your PostgreSQL procedures, functions, and triggers.
CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION dynamic_record_generator_srf(lim INT8)
RETURNS SETOF record
AS $$
upperLimit = lim.HasValue ? lim : System.Int32.MaxValue;
for(long i=0;i<upperLimit;i++){ yield return new object?[] { i, $"Number is {i}" }; }
$$ LANGUAGE plcsharp;
CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION dynamic_record_generator_srf_fsharp(lim INT8)
RETURNS SETOF record
AS $$
let upperLimit = Option.defaultValue (int64 System.Int32.MaxValue) lim
seq { for i in 0L .. upperLimit - 1L do yield [| box i; $"Number is {i}" |] }
$$ LANGUAGE plfsharp;
SQL features
We support all SQL function modes:
- normal procedures and functions
- trigger functions, will full trigger support: trigger arguments, old/new row, row rewriting (where allowed), and all the standard trigger information
- set-returning functions, nicely mapped to iterators in C# and sequences in F#
- table functions, as well as functions returning records or sets of records
- full support for IN/OUT/INOUT functions
Data type support
We support 40 PostgreSQL types, with all mapped to their NPGSQL-standard dotnet types. The only notable exceptions are multirange, enum, and struct types, which we hope to add in the future. All datatypes are nullable, have full array support, and are fully unit-tested for C# and F#. (Formatted as a list of (PostgreSQL type: Dotnet type) instead of a table for technical reasons.)
-
bit:BitArray -
bool:Bool -
box:NpgsqlBox -
bpchar:String -
bytea:Byte[] -
cidr:(IPAddress Address, Int Netmask) -
circle:NpgsqlCircle -
date:DateOnly -
daterange:NpgsqlRange<DateOnly> -
float4:Float -
float8:Double -
inet:(IPAddress Address, Int Netmask) -
int2:Short -
int4:Int -
int4range:NpgsqlRange<Int> -
int8:Long -
int8range:NpgsqlRange<Long> -
interval:NpgsqlInterval -
json:String -
line:NpgsqlLine -
lseg:NpgsqlLSeg -
macaddr8:PhysicalAddress -
macaddr:PhysicalAddress -
money:Decimal -
path:NpgsqlPath -
point:NpgsqlPoint -
polygon:NpgsqlPolygon -
record:Object?[] -
text:String -
timestamp:DateTime -
timestamptz:DateTime -
time:TimeOnly -
timetz:DateTimeOffset -
tsrange:NpgsqlRange<DateTime> -
tstzrange:NpgsqlRange<DateTime> -
uuid:Guid -
varbit:BitArray -
varchar:String -
void:Void -
xml:String
SPI
Our SPI leverages the NPGSQL client library to provide a native dotnet implementation which is maximally compatible with existing client code. We intercepted the NPGSQL calls at a very low level to replace the client protocol handling with SPI calls; otherwise, NPGSQL was unmodified. We imported the NPGSQL test suite as stored procedures and are using it for our testing, giving us very good understanding of our compatiblity level.
Work remains to improve the compatibility and add features. Our biggest category of NPGSQL tests that continue to fail is error mapping, because SPI throws exceptions differently than NPGSQL does. Such incompatibilities are minor but numerous; we continue working to improve them.
Here are our currently tested SPI operations:
-
Data Manipulation Language (DML) Operations
- Select
- Insert
- Update
- Delete
-
Data Definition Language (DDL) Operations
- Create Table
- Alter Table
- Drop Table
- Truncate
- Create Index
- Drop Index
- Create View
- Drop View
- Create Function
- Call Function
- Drop Function
- Create Procedure
- Call Procedure
- Drop Procedure
-
Transaction Control
- Begin Transaction
- Commit
- Rollback
-
Supported Data Types: all pl/dotnet types
- Basic types (including ranges)
- Array types
- Record
What we don’t have
We lack support for multirange, enum, and composite/table types. We intend to add them.
Our SPI implementation lacks some minor features like sub-transactions, and we sometimes raise errors in a different (and therefore slightly incompatible) way from NPGSQL.
Our build system, with both dpkg and binary output, is functional but not as tidy as we would like.
We welcome code submissions to address any of these issues, and we hope to improve them all in time.
Where to get it
Our operating system support:
- We fully support Linux and provide dpkg’s for Debian and Ubuntu. (Details on our installation page)
- We have built and tested the system on OSX (arm and x86), but we have not packaged it yet.
- We look forward to having Windows support soon; ping us if you would like to help.
Getting in touch
We welcome hearing from the community. You can reach us at our GitHub discussion forum or email us at pldotnet@brickabode.com.
https://www.postgresql.org/about/news/announcing-pldotnet-version-099-beta-2838/